Expert’s choice: Moulis & Listrac 2016

Looking for that satisfyingly dry, savoury, Médoc flavour but unwilling to pay classed growth prices? Try Moulis and Listrac, the tiny communal appellations that rub shoulders with Bordeaux heavyweights Margaux, St-Julien, Pauillac and St-Estèphe. The châteaux are less trumpeted, but good value is practically guaranteed.

Absent from the 1855 classification, Moulis and Listrac have a long-standing viticultural history dating back to the Middle Ages. This is prime cru bourgeois country, its vineyards established by the 18th century. By 1932 Château Chasse-Spleen in Moulis was labelled cru bourgeois exceptionnel, while 14 châteaux in Moulis and nine in Listrac were listed as crus bourgeois supérieurs.

Baron Edmond de Rothschild’s ambitious plans for Château Clarke in Listrac re-focused attention on the region in the 1980s. Since then, improvements by existing proprietors, plus new ownership and investment at châteaux such as Mauvesin Barton (2011) and Duplessis (2015) in Moulis and Fourcas Hosten (2006) in Listrac, have provided greater consistency and quality.

Moulis and Listrac have roughly the same delimited surface area, but Moulis annually declares about 600ha under production with Listrac closer to 400ha. The difference comes from a percentage of the latter being declared under the sub-regional Haut-Médoc appellation. All told, Moulis averages 4 million bottles yearly and Listrac 2.5 million.

The wines are fresh and clearly Médoc in style, but a little more rounded due to a higher percentage of Merlot in the blend. Listrac tends to be more vigorous and austere than Moulis, which has charm, occasionally flirting with the fruit and balance of St-Julien, but much depends on the terroir, blend and level of ripeness. Ready for drinking at five to six years, wines from the better vintages have potential over 10-15 years.

Running perpendicular to the Gironde estuary and equidistant from Margaux and St-Julien, Moulis and Listrac have varying terroirs and ripening cycles. The further west the vineyards, the later the ripening. In the east of Moulis a large area has deep, well-drained Günzian gravel soils, perfect for Cabernet Sauvignon. This is Grand Poujeaux, where leading crus Chasse Spleen, Poujeaux and Maucaillou are located. Cabernet makes up 50% of the blend, with Merlot and Petit Verdot.

Elsewhere clay-limestone soils demand a higher portion of Merlot. A pocket of Pyrenean gravel soils (lighter and sandier than Günzian) exists in the far west of the appellation, where Cabernet features more again.

The same soil types are found in Listrac but with a dominance of clay-limestone followed by Pyrenean gravel. This has led to a steady increase in plantings of Merlot to the present 65%, a factor that has gone some way to curbing Listrac’s robust nature. The Pyrenean gravel flows in a strip along the D1215 road with Château Fonréaud and the Fourcas properties taking advantage of this seam to augment Cabernet Sauvignon.

James Lawther MW’s top Moulis & Listrac 2016s

These wines are the best of those tasted at a tasting Lawther organised in Bordeaux

James Lawther MW is a contributing editor to Decanter and an independent wine writer, lecturer and tour guide based in Bordeaux.