Virginie de Valandraud 2018

Virginie de Valandraud is the Second Wine of the legendary Château Valandraud.  It is created by one of the most powerful couples in the world of wine, Jean-Luc Thunevin – affectionately known as, “the bad boy of Bordeaux,” and his talented wife, Murielle Andraud.  This forward-thinking couple kept some of the top Bordeaux producers on their toes with their groundbreaking ideas, butting heads with the rigorously enforced traditions within the region.  Their wines speak for themselves as powerful, concentrated yet restrained Right Bank treasures.

Prior to becoming a vigneron Jean-Luc was a successful négociant.  In 1989, Jean-Luc and Murielle purchased a small 0.6 hectare plot close to Château Pavie Macquin.  They purchased an additional 1.2 hectares of vines a bit further east in Saint Sulpice.  The name, “Valandraud,” is an interesting one.  The “Val,” portion comes from the location where the grapes are planted, a place called Vallon de Fongaban.  The latter portion of the name, “Andraud,” is the last name of Jean-Luc’s wife, Murielle.  Murielle makes all the wine for Château Valandraud and Jean-Luc runs the business and is the face of the operation.

Château Valandraud was the property that started the garagiste movement in modern winemaking.  Jean-Luc Thunevin and Murielle started their winemaking operation with virtually no money, so they made their first few vintages in a garage, hence the name garagiste.  The plucky couple started breaking the rules fairly early on.  In the 2002 vintage, Jean-Luc covered his vines with plastic tarping to protect them from potential water damage during the rainy season before harvest.  The French National Institute of Appellations forbade this practice and declassified his wine as table wine in retaliation.  They also forbade Jean-Luc and Murielle from putting their name on the bottles.  No matter for the plucky power couple, as they simply sold their wines as, "L’Interdit de V…D."  The label literally translates as "The Forbidden of V & D".  Its use was pioneered by the fashion house Givenchy as a brand for a new perfume launched in 1957.  Who is to be fooled?  Everybody who knew Château Valandraud knew this clever labeling hack would be their way of skirting around the rules and regulations.  This earned Jean-Luc the title of the Bad Boy of Saint-Émilion. Château Valandraud was catapulted into the stratosphere when it was classified as a Saint-Émilion Premiere Crus Classés Class B property in 2012; a triumph for the estate.

Virginie de Valandraud was introduced as a Second Wine in 1992.  For the Thunevins, a Second Wine isn’t just a Second Wine, it’s a wine that is able to stand on its own merit.  The quality level of this Saint-Émilion Grand Crus is simply superb, and it is one of the better value for dollar wines on the market.  Since 1997, the undeniable quality of this wine raised its status to that of a First Wine, a Saint-Émilion Grand Crus.  This is a rare feat for a Second Wine, and proof that sometimes it's good to be a little bad...

"The 2018 Virginie de Valandraud is superb. Silky, pliant and expressive, the 2018 is wonderfully caressing right out of the gate. Crushed red berry fruit, mocha, spice and new leather all meld together effortlessly. From bottle, the 2018 is more refined and delicate than it was from barrel, and every bit as compelling. The Virginie is made from a collection of unclassed parcels around Valandraud and on the plains below the core holdings." - Antonio Galloni, Vinous, (03/31/2021), Ratings: 94

"Loads of cassis, chalky minerality, flowers, and lead pencil notes emerge from the 2018 Château Valandraud Virginie De Valandraud, which is full-bodied and has a layered, seamless texture, silky tannins, and a great finish. Showing more tobacco and even a hint of white truffle with time in the glass, this beautiful, elegant Saint-Emilion brings plenty of fruit and texture. It's going to keep for 10-15 years." - Jeb Dunnuck, (03/16/2021), Ratings: 93

"Sinewy but with salinity and plush red and black fruits, this finishes with a twist of salinity that gives a mouthwatering finale. This is a beautiful Virginie de Valandraud, the best that I have tasted to date. It's just so drinkable, this is one to savour and share with friends. Valandraud now incorporates an extra 10ha in St Etienne de Lisse, so the estate is 40ha in total, with 9ha in the grand vin and the rest in this second wine." - Jane Anson, (04/01/2019), Ratings: 93, Drink 2027 - 2040