2019
FROM PETER SISSECK | 2019 VINTAGE EN PRIMEUR EXCLUSIVE TO CORNEY & BARROW IN THE UK AND HONG KONG
CHATEAU ROCHEYRON FROM PETER SISSECK |
2019 VINTAGE
“I love it, really exceptional stuff from winemaker Peter Sisseck, with clear ageing potential showcasing the potential of limestone.” Jane Anson
To find out more about Corney & Barrow visit www.corneyandbarrow.com
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INDEPENDENT WINE MERCHANT SINCE 1780
CHATEAU ROCHEYRON FROM PETER SISSECK |
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Peter Sisseck outside Château Rocheyron
2019 VINTAGE
To find out more about Corney & Barrow visit www.corneyandbarrow.com
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INDEPENDENT WINE MERCHANT SINCE 1780
ROCHEYRON SAINT-ÉMILION GRAND CRU 2019
Peter Sisseck’s journey is a fabulous story of a Danish boy’s dream to become a winemaker – a dream not only realised but fulfilled to a legendary degree.
Inspired by his uncle Peter Vinding-Diers, Peter Sisseck (nicknamed Pingus) studied in Bordeaux and then moved to Spain’s Ribera del Duero, where he built his considerable reputation. Having found this passionate, talented young man at the outset, we grasped the opportunity to forge an exclusive relationship with the soon-to-be iconic Dominio de Pingus. Despite Peter’s golden reputation in Spain, Bordeaux continues to pull at his heart strings. A unique opportunity raised its head, the chance to develop a longstanding love for Bordeaux whilst being able to remain, and indeed develop, his work in Spain. Vive Château Rocheyron! Being passionately committed to the wines of the Right Bank at Corney & Barrow, we were delighted to hear of our friend returning to Bordeaux and jumped at the chance to represent Château Rocheyron. Along with his friend and business partner in this project, Silvio Denz, Peter is set on creating (or re-creating) a new norm. In a sense, the vision is to go ‘forward to the past’, but a past with all of the advantages of contemporary viticultural disciplines and winemaking knowledge. Château Rocheyron is a truly lovely property, beautifully sited in the hamlet of Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes, just 3.6km from the centre of Saint-Émilion, on the edge of the celebrated limestone plateau. With the 2019 vintage, the ninth since he started in 2010, Peter has taken Rocheyron to a new level.
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CHATEAU ROCHEYRON FROM PETER SISSECK |
THE VINEYARD
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The vineyard comprises two main plots of land – with subplots within – planted with very old vines. The older vines are over 80 years old, bringing up the average to over 45 years. Of the 7.4 hectares of vines, one plot, around 75% of the total, lies towards Castillon, planted on very true limestone, the better soil, although planted with younger vines. The other 25% from La Boutisse is on more fractured limestone, where the vines are very old. There are five hectares of Merlot and the rest is very old Cabernet Franc. Peter was determined from day one to farm organically and, as at Pingus, viticulture is now biodynamic. The vineyard is run, in Peter’s own words, “like a First Growth”. His clear goal is to extract the very best from this exceptional terroir, requiring meticulous attention to detail, rigorous vineyard management and ruthless selection. Yields are very low.
2019 VINTAGE
To find out more about Corney & Barrow visit www.corneyandbarrow.com
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INDEPENDENT WINE MERCHANT SINCE 1780
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Château Rocheyron
CHATEAU ROCHEYRON FROM PETER SISSECK |
THE CELLAR
The renovated cellar at Château Rocheyron is pristine, efficient and functional, including new cement tanks. He sees his role here as a facilitator, his main responsibilities having been discharged in the vineyard.
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Peter’s ambition for Rocheyron is to produce a classic, terroir-focused style. The size of the property allows for single parcels to be vinified separately, as are vines of different ages. Three passages through the vineyard are required to harvest young Merlot, old Merlot and finally Cabernet Franc, all then kept apart. Only the very best cuvées make it into Château Rocheyron and thus the integrity of the grand vin is fully protected. Nothing is added to the must and the emerging wine, with pumping-over kept to a minimum. Peter goes for a moderate temperature of 22°C during fermentation, to ensure gentle extraction. The 2019 is currently being aged in 40% new oak, 60% one year-old and will remain in barrel for 18 months. It will be bottled without filtration.
2019 VINTAGE
To find out more about Corney & Barrow visit www.corneyandbarrow.com
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INDEPENDENT WINE MERCHANT SINCE 1780
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CHATEAU ROCHEYRON FROM PETER SISSECK |
2019 VINTAGE
2019 VINTAGE NOTES “A climate of many contrasts: a very damp autumn, a cold spring and a searing summer”. PETER SISSECK
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Peter Sisseck would be the first to praise his extraordinary team – a team which has embraced biodynamic viticulture in a region which tends to be wary, if not cynical of such innovations. Whilst annually we record the facts of a vintage, the increasingly innate strength and power of these vines cannot be overestimated, often in defiance of nature throwing down the gauntlet. If man takes some time to get under the skin of a vineyard, so too the vines, gradually getting used to their new masters. In this case, the vines having had their drug habits denied them, through organic viticulture, were possibly a little belligerent at first but have grown through that phase to greater health and strength – a tremendous boon in 2019. The winter of 2018/2019 began with record rainfall over November and December with very little rain thereafter. February and March were unseasonably both hot and dry which led to early budding (almost two weeks ahead of normal).
In such circumstances, optimism at the early start is tempered by fear of frost and, yes, a wave of frost did arrive on cue but did not affect all plots. Variation across the vineyard clearly presented challenges in addition to those already resulting from the dry conditions. Growth slowed until rain in late June both facilitated a bit of a spurt and evened out, to a degree, the disparities between plots. Peter and his team are certain that it is their biodynamic cultivation which has made for greater resilience in the vines so that they are less susceptible to arrested growth or dehydration. In 2019, the Merlot was harvested from 19th to 21th September and Cabernet Franc on 7th October. The picking dates were reasonably early in order to preserve freshness. And the wine? As James Suckling says, “sleek and racy with compressed, ultra-fine tannins… full-bodied, yet very reserved and fine-grained.”
ALISON BUCHANAN June 2020
To find out more about Corney & Barrow visit www.corneyandbarrow.com
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INDEPENDENT WINE MERCHANT SINCE 1780
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CHATEAU ROCHEYRON FROM PETER SISSECK |
To Order LONDON
020 7265 2430 EAST ANGLIA
01638 600 000 NORTH OF ENGLAND
01748 828 640 EDINBURGH
01875 321 921 HONG KONG
+852 3694 3333 EMAIL
sales@corneyandbarrow.com PLEASE NOTE These wines are released en primeur. Delivery dates to be confirmed. All prices are quoted in bond UK.
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Tasting Guide Our tasting notes provide full details but, at your request, we have also introduced a clear and simple marking system. We hope these guidelines assist you in your selection. For the benefit of simplicity, wines are scored out of 20. We will often use a range of scores (e.g. 16.5 to 17) to indicate the potential to achieve a higher mark. When a ‘+’ is shown it adds further to that potential. Wines from lesser vintages will, inevitably, show a lower overall score. Wines are judged, in a very broad sense, against their peers. Why? Well, you cannot easily compare a Ford with an Aston Martin, other than they are both cars and have wheels. It is not that different with wine. A score is a summary only. The devil is in the detail, so please focus on the tasting notes and, as always, speak to our sales team.
2019 VINTAGE
To find out more about Corney & Barrow visit www.corneyandbarrow.com
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INDEPENDENT WINE MERCHANT SINCE 1780
2019 TASTING NOTE By Guy Seddon
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CHÂTEAU ROCHEYRON 2019 Saint-Émilion Grand Cru
80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. Violets, blueberry and raspberry fruit on the lifted, aromatic nose. Darker berries on the attack – blackberry and cassis – with a generous sweetness and succulence of fruit on the midpalate, before the beautifully fine, yet firm, grippy tannins impose themselves, aided by that limestone precision and taut acidity. This is a powerfully decadent Rocheyron for the long term, silky and sculpted, with a driving finish of rich berries and dark chocolate flavours. Bravo Peter! 40% new oak. Corney & Barrow Score 18+ Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2040 £335/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK £115/CASE OF 1 MAGNUM, IN BOND UK £255/CASE OF 1 DOUBLE MAGNUM, IN BOND UK £485/CASE OF 1 IMPERIAL (6L), IN BOND UK £750/CASE OF 1 SALMANAZAR (9L), IN BOND UK £990/CASE OF 1 BALTHAZAR (12L), IN BOND UK £1,235/CASE OF 1 NEBUCHADNEZZAR (15L), IN BOND UK £1,505/CASE OF 1 MELCHIOR (18L), IN BOND UK All prices are quoted in bond UK
CHATEAU ROCHEYRON FROM PETER SISSECK |
2019 VINTAGE
CONTACT US We have offices in England, Scotland and Hong Kong. Please see below for details
Our Locations
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LONDON 1 Thomas More Street London E1W 1YZ T +44 (0)20 7265 2400 sales@corneyandbarrow.com
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IN THE PRESS Although we always ask our customers to take our word for how good wines are rather than relying on third party commentary, we simply couldn’t resist sharing a few comments on Rocheyron 2019…
“The 2019 Rocheyron, possesses a really gorgeous bouquet, a mixture of red and black fruit, loamy soil and rose petal scents, all beautifully defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, a fine bead of acidity, so much freshness and tension bursting towards the finish that you want to immediately return for another sip. The best Rocheyron thus far.”
“Another extremely successful vintage for Château Rocheyron, combining powerful blackberry, raspberry and cassis fruits, with bitter-edged black chocolate and perfectly-judged tannins that scrape through the finish like pure slate. This dives deep down in terms of its flavours and reach, and answers the expectations for a StÉmilion with breadth and impact, but doesn't overpower, and backpedals on the finish to end with lightness and grace. I love it, really exceptional stuff from winemaker Peter Sisseck, with clear ageing potential showcasing the potential of limestone.”
Neal Martin
Jane Anson
“This is really sleek and racy with compressed, ultra-fine tannins that run the length of the palate. It’s full-bodied, yet very reserved and fine-grained. Noble tannins. Long and refined.” James Suckling
www.corneyandbarrow.com