Le Baron Marc Brincard, Château de la Bizolière (1880)

It is difficult to ignore the influence the Brincard family has within the appellation of Savennières, although they have not been involved directly since the last vintage of Château de la Bizolière was produced in their own cellar in 1982. The Château is a grand classical residence, based on the Hôtel Particulier in Montmartre and sits in a fifty hectare park to the rear of the plateau de Savennières. The park itself is influenced by the Jardin des Tuileries in the centre of Paris and has at its centre a pond reflecting a span from the old Tuileries Palace that was destroyed by arsonists in 1871. The property was originally owned by the Duboys d’Angers family, but came to the Brincards through marriage. Baron Georges Brincard arrived here in 1880 and was largely responsible for designing the aforementioned gardens. He was the son-in-law of Henri Germain, the founder of Credit Lyonnais, becoming president of the bank himself during the 1920s. At the time of Georges’s arrival, Bizolière laid claim to several hundred hectares of land around the commune, including some 40 hectares of vineyards, and although vines were replanted here after the phylloxera epidemic, they were never to attain the same heritage again. The location of two parcels, Clos de Roussel and Clos de Malabris which were known to exist through specific cuvées in the late 1920s, appear to have fallen into disuse, or at least are today known by different names.   

Georges was succeeded by his son, Baron Charley Brincard, who continued to produce wine at their unpretentious earth-floored cellar situated in the very centre of the village of Savennières until 1982. The wines were aged in small barrels, under the guidance of the cellar master, the quietly spoken Albert Giraud. 

Today, the Chateau de la Bizolière is under the ownership of Charley’s son, the Cambridge educated banker, Baron Marc Brincard who, along with his sister Madame Vaulchier, is landlord to more than a dozen growers within the appellation. Sadly the current Baron shows little interest in his tenants or perpetuating the great legacy of the wines of Savennières.

The Wines:  
I have limited experience of these wines, but below is a recent note on one wine that would have been made in the old cellar in the town. In addition to table wine, the domaine also produced sparkling wine from juice from its own vineyards and vinified by the sparkling wine firm of Langlois-Château near Saumur during the late 1970s. 

1999 Château de la Bizolière
This wine was produced and marketed by Château de Chamboureau. Polished. Deep appearance with good Chenin expression. Authentic. Mature, showing some white flower aromas. Mineral behind. Dry on entry. Good texture and weight with richness and density. Linear acidity with good freshness with a citrus zip. Approachable, but not yet fully mature. This is a very good effort for the vintage and should hold. Elegant and refined. (04/09) 

1976 Château de la Bizolière  
Bright, mid-full appearance. Youthful yellow/green hints. Some evolution to the palate and shows some evidence of brettanomyces. Quiet and not very expressive on the nose. Mid weight, tight and mineral palate. Some terpine flavours. Quite gentle. Harmonious. Good length. Should hold. (06/04)

Back to the list of Savennières producers