A luscious, sensual effort, the dark plum-colored 2003 exhibits a big, rich nose of dried herbs, high quality cigar tobacco, fruit cake, red currants, and sweet licorice. It is medium-bodied, soft, round, and seductive, lacking only depth and persistence. Drink it over the next 10-12 years.
Pairing: Aged Cheese, Game Animals, Grilled Red Meats, Legume, Roasts, Stews.
Figeac is a very ancient estate, going back at least as far as the 2nd century AD. It belonged to the same family for more than 500 years, and was nearly 200 hectares by the late 18th century. Unfortunately, the estate was sold a number of times in the 19th century. Successive owners sold numerous... plots, which explains the birth of various chateaux that appended the name Figeac to their own. However, Figeac continues to be the largest estate in the commune of Saint-Emilion, with 40 hectares of vines. The central part of the chateau, built in a very pure, classical architectural style, dates from the late 18th century. It would be useful to place Chateau Figeac within the context of its appellation. The Saint-Emilion appellation covers 5,400 hectares, and includes more than 1,200 estates and here are various soil types. The 4 main ones are: Steep limestone slopes located near the town of Saint-Emilion (2,400 hectares) A lluvial sand on the large plain along the banks of the Dordogne. There are nearly 2,000 hectares here as well The 3rd large sub-division, covering 1,200 hectares, is composed of a plateau located west of the town, and which extends as far as the village of Pomerol. The last region, located to the extreme west of the 3rd area, is the smallest part of the appellation, made up of 60 hectares of gravel. Chateaux Cheval Blanc and Figeac share this small area, which is often referred to as ´Graves de Saint-Emilion´. Athough most of the appellation is planted with Merlot (which is ideal for limestone soils), and to a lesser extent Cabernet Franc, Chateau Figeac uses completely different proportions of grape varieties on account of its fine gravelly soil: 70 % Cabernet (half Cabernet Franc, half Cabernet Sauvignon) and only 30 % Merlot. This unusual blend of grape varieties explains why Figeac can be considered the ´most Médoc of Saint-Emilions´.
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