Le lab
Born from Hubert de Boüard’s intuition that exceptional terroirs could produce great wines, being somewhat a Pomerol in Lalande as some connoisseurs tell us, Fleur de Boüard is not just a vineyard. It is above all a human adventure, a sharing shaped by encounters, events, climate, ecological imperatives, and economic constraints. All within an unstable environment that calls for sustainability, a gloominess that must engender hope and determination to change our world to the best of our humble ability.
Born from Hubert de Boüard’s intuition that exceptional terroirs could produce great wines, being somewhat a Pomerol in Lalande as some connoisseurs tell us, Fleur de Boüard is not just a vineyard. It is above all a human adventure, a sharing shaped by encounters, events, climate, ecological imperatives, and economic constraints. All within an unstable environment that calls for sustainability, a gloominess that must engender hope and determination to change our world to the best of our humble ability.
Bref, par un retour de générosité envers la nature, partager, innover, mettre en œuvre nos intelligences pour nous ajuster aux modifications climatiques et à leurs conséquences.
Telles sont les valeurs vécues au quotidiens et les défis que nous tentons humblement de relever à la Fleur de Boüard.
The missionof the laboratory
The Lab @ La Fleur de Boüard, more than an internal school, is a place of exchange with intellectual rigor in service of nature and our clients.
The Lab has two means in service of this mission:
Continuing education
The vine is generous. Hubert de Boüard is too. Sharing his knowledge from a rich experience of 40 harvests, 40 vintages, with enthusiasm and without limits, Hubert de Boüard has allowed a new generation of winemakers to emerge, to confront reality, to mature like our fruits, in the sun, but also in the rain, in the gusts as in the lulls.
Trained by the Father of modern oenology Emile Peynaud, professor of oenology, Hubert holds a fond and grateful memory of him.
Indeed, this chemist worked on the numerous problems encountered in the winemaking process. He first convinced chateaux to harvest grapes at full maturity. He continued by eliminating from the harvest all ungraded grapes to obtain wines of the best possible quality.
Emile Peynaud introduced the destemming and fermentation in separate batches, depending on the age of the vine, the maturity of the grape varieties, the location of the vineyard, etc. This method is now known as “terroir selection.” He then applied the temperature control method in fermentations in Champagne and Bordeaux. His methods, which went against many traditions, were targeted by skeptics in the 1950s and 1960s, who denounced the “peynaudization” of Bordeaux wines.
Relentlessly and with tenacity, he also focused on controlling malolactic fermentation when it was commonly assumed at that time to be a disease. He made it clear the need to encourage and control this fermentation.
Hubert de Boüard was also a student of Pascal Ribéreau-Gayon, who was the director of the Institute of Oenology at Bordeaux University, son of Jean Ribéreau-Gayon who created the Institute of Oenology of Bordeaux in 1949, and notably discovered the process of malolactic fermentation with Emile Peynaud in 1949.
The vine is tenacious, Hubert de Boüard too
Insisting within the family to modify certain ancient practices in the famous family vineyard of Château Angelus, Hubert gradually imposes his innovative, disturbing but so beneficial ideas for wine quality!
The expression of terroir, respect, and even love for the plant, nature, is fully expressed in these evolutions imprinted on Angelus, then on La Fleur de Boüard.
The vine bears fruit. Hubert de Boüard too
Daily training many of his collaborators, he imparts his knowledge to young talents who only ask for that.
In addition to the Angelus teams with which those of La Fleur de Boüard cooperate as in an extended family, Hubert de Boüard trained those of La Fleur.
The oldest, Maryna, Brigitte, Claudio among others (we cannot mention them all), on pruning and vine maintenance following the example of gardeners. The love of a well-done gesture following the understanding of the living, the plant in constant evolution.
These staff training sessions take place in the vineyards. Our young technical director, 34-year-old Bryan Dessaint, a member of the consulting division of Hubert de Boüard’s companies, has been in good hands for 12 years, academically trained but also daily during work meetings, tastings of each tank after harvest, fermentations or blends.
Training also of Kinga Hars, our new cellar master from Château Angelus, on the wine production process in this particularly innovative suspended inverted conical tank.
The vine is solid. Hubert de Boüard's teachings too
Planting to last. Training to last. An evocative parallel. It takes time, it takes patience, and it takes humility. In the vineyard, in the cellar, as in a meeting room or around a blank sheet of paper.
With nearly 200 people trained in recent years, Hubert de Boüard has planted, sown, and watered plants that will strive to disseminate this knowledge. La Fleur is one of the very first beneficiaries, and we observe daily the obvious interest of this continuing education both for wine, and therefore consumers, but also for the plant, and therefore for nature.
Making precise, delicate, complex, refined wines while respecting the living and receiving from nature the best of what it can offer us is a practice and a result consistent with our values.
The Lab @ La Fleur training sessions take place approximately once a month and are venues for lively exchanges, constructive debates, feedback from Hubert’s travels around the world, or observations made during work in the 50 properties advised by his consulting company. A very rich source of information and a laboratory multiplied and on a global scale.
Innovation
New grape varieties, new wines, let’s break the codes to see what nature and intelligence can offer us.
But the Lab @ La Fleur de Boüard is not just a training place; it is also a true innovation laboratory, a place of real-life experimentation. This innovation has multi-directional objectives:
Towards nature first.
To each their due. The preservation of our resources, respect for the ecosystem is at the heart of our daily concerns. Indeed, promoting biodiversity is not an option. We must all strive to leave our descendants a livable, rich, and protected earth.
Absolute respect for life and anticipation as much as possible of the consequences of climate change are the objectives of the thematic workshops addressed and led by Hubert de Boüard on the property for several years:
Some examples of topics on the menu:
The role and structure of vegetative cover and competition between plants for the development of the root system.
The typology of rootstocks and their interest in combating water stress. New microbiological technologies, extraordinary tools for viticulture and oenology of tomorrow.
Clonal or mass selections?
A Fallow Feeding: “Regeneration” or “Rest”?
The interest of inverted conical shape, or how to better use gravity.
Key materials for wine aging.
The importance of choosing oak species and their origin for wine and the consumer. The evolution of consumer tastes and their concordance with Fleur de Boüard wines.
Towards our customers finally
Wine enthusiasts, who only seek pleasure. To venture off the beaten path, to depart from commonplaces, and to attempt to understand the behavior of different varieties on different terroirs. Initially, an intellectual quest, ultimately, a hedonistic pursuit that benefits all!
This Lab is a place where Hubert de Boüard has wished, since 2016, to let each grape variety express itself individually to unveil to visitors and consumers the finesse and contribution of each variety.
This Lab is a place where Hubert de Boüard has wished, since 2016, to let each grape variety express itself individually to unveil to visitors and consumers the finesse and contribution of each variety.
The choice of vine stock and its terroir, drainage, freshness, and biological ecosystem are all an art, a patient and humble research. While some have been abandoned like the very traditional Semillon, others have experienced unexpected take-offs. This is primarily the case with Chardonnay. This case deserves attention.
This case deserves attention.
Indeed, Hubert de Boüard created this wine, La Fleur de Boüard Chardonnay, from Burgundian plants, followed by a methodical search to obtain a light, fruity, rich but not heavy, smooth but not overly buttery expression, with just the right amount of tension and acidity to tantalize your palate. The result was not long in coming. The Lab has, of course, carefully examined a Burgundian winemaking process (aged on lees, stirred, without malolactic fermentation, aged in Cécile oak barrels with light Burgundian toasting), which gives this wine the means to rival the great Burgundies, particularly Puligny Montrachet, to which it is often compared.
Another success of the Lab will likely be the rosé from Provence, fiercely Mediterranean as desired by the Lab. Scheduled for release in March 2024, it is highly anticipated despite a very small volume of 1,300 bottles – spots will be scarce!
“For any information request regarding Le Lab @Fleur de Boüard, please contact us by email.
