Chateau Gree-Laroque Bordeaux Superieur, Complete Guide

Learn everything about Chateau Gree Laroque Bordeaux Superieur with wine tasting notes and wine with food pairing tips, best vintages, a history of the property, and information on the vineyards and winemaking. If you want to read about other important, Bordeaux Chateaux: Links to all Bordeaux Wine Producer Profiles

Chateau Gree Laroque History, Overview

Chateau Gree Laroque was acquired by its current owners Patricia de Nyvenheim and Arnaud Benoit de Nyvenheim back in 1981. The name of the estate comes from a combination of geographical and personal names.

Gree is the maiden name of Patricia and Laroque is the name of the street where the owners live. The new owners of Chateau Gree-Laroque brought in the team of Stephane Derenoncourt starting with the 2000 vintage.

Chateau Gree Laroque Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Winemaking

The diminutive 2.5-hectare Chateau Gree-Laroque vineyard is planted to 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is a Bordeaux Superieur produced from vines planted in the Entre Deux Mers appellation in the Saint Ciers d’Abzac commune.

The vineyards are composed of two very different terroirs. You have molasse, which is a type of limestone mixed with sand and clay soil in one part of the vineyard. The other terroir is limestone and clay soils that you can often find in St. Emilion. The vineyards are surrounded by trees, parkland, and grazing land for sheep.

On average, the vines are old as many of their vines are close to 50 years of age. The vineyard is planted to a vine density of 6,500 vines per hectare. This Right Bank Bordeaux property is organically farmed with an eye to becoming fully biodynamic. In fact, little by little, Chateau Gree-Laroque continues its march to using 100% biodynamic farming techniques each vintage.

At Chateau Gree-Laroque, the grapes are destemmed, sorted, and the whole berries moved by conveyor belt into small, 25 hectoliter, stainless steel tanks for vinification. The alcoholic fermentation and maceration run 28 days on average. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrels.

The wines are aged in an average of 60% new, French oak barrels for 12 months before bottling. Not much wine is made here, so it can be a bit hard to find with only 1,000 cases of wine produced here in a good vintage.

There is a second wine, Le Second de Gree. Chateau Gree Laroque is designated as a Bordeaux Superieur wine that combines value with quality and style.

The best vintages of Chateau Gree Laroque are: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2009 and 2005.

When to Drink Chateau Gree Laroque, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time

Chateau Gree Laroque is better with at least 1-3 years of aging in good vintages. Young vintages can be decanted for up to 1 hour, helping the wine soften to help develop the aromatic character.

Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment. Chateau Gree Laroque offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 2-7 years of age after the vintage.

Serving Chateau Gree Laroque with Wine, Food, Pairing Tips

Chateau Gree Laroque is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.

Chateau Gree Laroque is best paired with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau Gree Laroque is also good when matched with Asian dishes, rich fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta.

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