A MARVELLOUS CAPRICE OF NATURE !
An amazing year. A year which will remain in the memory due to the unusual climatic conditions :

2006 was a rather dry year but with enough rainfall in each month to allow the vines to endure the heat.
This was a year which was globally hot, (hotter than 2005), with the months of June, July and September having scorching temperatures. August was an exception being colder with frequent winds which dried up the rain showers and morning dew. The start of September was exceptionally hot and followed a cooler but stormy period. The eccentricities of nature were the key to the development of the vines and profoundly affected the quality of the grapes These atypical elements were beneficial to the future quality of the grapes and ensured a favourable outcome with :

  - early flowering throughout the vineyard taking place at the end of May. The growth of the vines stopped early before veraison (the skins changing colour) due to high temperatures in July and raised night time temperatures.
  - veraison was early at ther end of July.
  - Maturation took place slowly due to the cooler weather in August but it accelerated with beneficial results in the exceptional climatic conditions in the first half of September.
  - The merlot cépage, which enjoys naturally early ripening had achieved a very beautiful maturity by the vendange and had greatly benefited from the climatic conditions.

Our involvement and expertise :
2006 was a millésime in which we had to double our efforts in the vineyard (through éclaircissage thinning the bunches of grapes to the benefit of those remaining, effeuillage - the limited removal of the lower leaves to expose the grapes to the wind in order to keep them dry, etc.), to improve the maturation of the grapes and to carry out the vendange in the optimum conditions. Our efforts have been greatly repaid.
The rains of mid-September gave us considerable concern for the vendange but they were short-lived and the harvest took place in continuous sunshine.
Our expertise allowed us to adapt our vinification techniques to take account of the challenges of the millésime and we were able to exploit the great potential of the grapes.

A VERY GREAT AROMATIC RICHNESS !
As always in years with varied weather conditions the great terroir of Fougas revealed all of the complexity of the millésime. The merlots were harvested from the 25th to the 28th of September and revealed their quality through:
  - a level of natural alcohol approaching 13%,
  - a level of acidity which promises a good final balance,
  - an exceptional aromatic potential which is very characteristic of the 2006 millésime, and
  - thick grape skins with great colour (anthocyanes), rich in phenolics.
The cabernet francs and cabernet sauvignons were in their turn harvested from the 2nd October. Their quality and finesse had the same complexity and aroma as the merlots.