2017 is living proof that it is still Mother Nature who holds the reins, for better or worse.

2017 was a vintage which is almost synonymous with the great late frost which swept much of Europe, though the damage it caused varied greatly in different regions.

So, to look back on this atypical, 2-in-1 vintage…

The winter and early spring were extremely mild and dry, in fact one of the driest of the century so far. This naturally led to quite uniform early budding, from the 26th of March in some of our plots, and an initial phase of rapid growth.

In the second half of April, however, the weather changed with the arrival of an anticyclone marked by clear skies and a north-easterly wind. The air mass therefore cooled and temperatures fell fast.

The nights of the 27th and 28th of April were devastating, not only because of the intensity of the cold but also the vast area where it struck.
No region was spared: the only difference was the scale of the damage.

65% of the production at Château Canon La Gaffelière was affected, while at Clos de l'Oratoire it was 70%, Château Peyreau over 90%, and Château d'Aiguilhe 60%. Only La Mondotte was spared.

After the initial shock and despondency that an event like this causes, it was time to set to work. It was time to seriously take stock of the situation. What should we do? Prune? Rush to work without a plan? No. It was essential instead to take time, to wait, to watch and keep watching, and to weigh up the life force still present in the wood of the vines… and only then intervene and fight…

Marking the vines, taking action to prevent disease, analysing the petioles, applying liquid compost, etc. There was a great deal of work to be done - painstaking, but necessary for the future, working in the short term for a second generation of grapes.

Yes, that was what it was about… betting on the second generation of this 2-in-1 vintage.

After the frost, the weather in spring was radiant and almost summerlike. Temperatures above the seasonal norms, combined with a dry spell that lasted until the end of June, led to a quick and consistent flowering, starting on the 15th of May in the earliest plots!

While late June was very wet, summer was amazingly dry, exacerbating the water shortage of the winter, even in clay soils.

Rain at the beginning of September brought the grape skins to full maturity, and the ripening process was very uniform.

Painstaking work that marked the whole vintage reached its culmination during the harvest, with the combination of first and second-generation bunches: picking of the first-generation grapes began on the 14th of September, finishing on the 29th, while the second generation was harvested between the 3rd and the 10th of October.

At this stage of development, our different crus are all fresh and elegant, displaying rich aromas, and tannins.

Downloadable version (pdf)

2014年份葡萄酒即将在几周后结束它的陈酿……回顾一下家侬凯芙酒庄和La Mondotte酒庄获得有机生态农业认证的第一个年份！

Stephan von Neipperg先生到达家侬凯芙酒庄之后，随即进行了整体分析研究，确定了酒庄生产理念的基础：尊重不同风土的特质，探索每片土地生态系统的自我平衡。

自1988年开启的深入注重生态环境的工作思路非常迅速地在酒庄长期确立下来，以期能够给后代留下一份健康和谐的植物生态遗产，对Stephan von Neipperg先生来说，这才是家族最重要的永恒的传承。

上世纪90代末通过认真观察自然环境中的各个不同组成，我们不断调整改进葡萄种植管理工作，以便最大程度地尊重自然生态环境。每一项操作都根据一份详尽的分地块工作方案被严格规范出来。

观察与分析是冯纳博伯爵葡萄酒公司的基石，为此，自2006年起公司增设了一个名为研究与发展的专项工作岗位。

为重新获得生态多样性、焕发生命活力，酒庄进行了多年不懈的努力，这一切最终获得了成功和认可：2014年家侬凯芙酒庄和La Mondotte酒庄获得了FR-BIO-10级别（法国品质）有机生态农业认证。

这两座酒庄同时还获得了环境管理系统（SME）的 ISO 14001质量认证。

直到今天，家侬凯芙酒庄和La Mondotte酒庄仍然是波尔多产区红葡萄酒类一等列级酒庄中仅有的两家获得有机生态农业认证的酒庄。

2016 was a year with many twists and turns!

Winter was rather gloomy, as well as exceptionally mild and rainy. This led to early bud break from the 24th to the 28th of March (variable depending on the estate).

Beautiful, dry weather in the first week of June was accompanied by markedly above-average temperatures. This changed things considerably at the beginning of flowering, which was quick and even (starting on the 2nd of June in the most early-maturing plots).

However, the profile of the vintage changed radically as of the 20th of June.

Temperatures returned to the seasonal average, although there were a few peaks above 35°C in mid-July. Fruit set and bunch closure took place under very favourable conditions.

The very dry weather brought about moderate water stress conducive to even véraison (colour change), which ended on the 15th of August in late-maturing plots.

Nevertheless, excessive water stress did not occur because reserves had been reconstituted thanks to rainfall in the early part of the year. Furthermore, the von Neipperg vineyards have deeply-rooted vines and excellent soil covering management.

The diurnal temperature difference in August and the first two weeks in September accounted for the very harmonious development of aromas and tannins.

It rained on the 13th and 30th of September, giving a boost to ripening. The grapes already had an attractive freshness and fruitiness at this time!

The month of October was cooler, but still very sunny, which enabled our Cabernet Franc and (rare) Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to ripen perfectly.

The harvest began on the 26th of September at Canon La Gaffelière and finished on the 18th of October at Château d’Aiguilhe.

At the present time, i.e. at this stage of ageing, all the wines from our estates are showing beautiful aromatic complexity. The new wines are fresh, well-focused, and fruity with good body and tannin.

Click here to watch Stephan von Neipperg speaking about the 2016 vintage.

大纪堡自2015年开始使用新酿酒罐。

在木质酿酒罐之后，我们选择安装了混凝土质锥形新酿酒罐。

正如前期的那些酿酒罐，这些新酒罐具有非常好的隔温效果，可实现缓慢轻柔的酒精发酵，这些对冯纳博伯爵葡萄酒公司来说都是非常珍贵的品质。

新酒罐共有9个，是对那些壮观的木质酿酒罐的补充（正在使用的共有19个），但同时也是用于生产副牌酒的不锈钢质酿酒罐的补充。

这些微型设备可实现分地块接收处理酒庄位于卡斯帝永波尔多丘（Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux）的黏土石灰岩高地的50公顷土地上出产的葡萄。