Bordeaux's hidden treasure

Chateau Biac is unusual in a number of ways. In its current shape and size it has been in existence for over six hundred years. The more famous and flatter postcodes with their enormous properties may cover huge tracts of land but are vulnerable to being split up. Biac is largely walled, so in Burgundian terms would be considered a clos. Biac has steep slopes for a Bordeaux property and a real mix of soils, ideal for the vines planted on them. So while some of Bordeaux's most illustrious communes don't have that, Biac has it within its walls. And its amphitheatre shape situated above the river gives it more light and heat than is the norm, enabling ripeness and concentration.

Biac has many advantages apart from terroir. It has owners who might not have been shopping for a vineyard attached to the house they were hunting, but who have certainly worked out exactly how to restore and improve what they bought. They wanted a base in France; they have become the best kind of winegrower. There are four main wines here, one of which never leaves the property and we are showing the three that do: the Biac, its junior B de Biac and the Secret. The latter is an unctuous botrytis affected wine grown within spitting distance of the best of Sauternes, for that is where you'll find Langoiran and this very special estate.

We warmly welcome Youmna Asseily, chatelaine of Biac, to pour and talk to you about the wines. /CW