Wine Harvest: Château Latour-Martillac

On 1st of October, Château Latour-Martillac, a Grand Cru Classé located in the AOC Pessac Léognan area, did us the huge honour of welcoming our two International MBA classes for a day’s instruction on grape harvesting.

A young student from our Wine & Spirits Specialisation class, Lonnie Smadja, gives us her impressions of the day.

Lonnie, what did you think of the day?

I should like to say, on behalf of both classes, that we had a wonderful day. We received a very warm welcome from our hosts and the visit was very interesting.

What did you learn from the day?

For me, this was a very instructive day. Even though we didn’t actually pick grapes, we were lucky enough to see all the techniques used in the process. We also had an opportunity to visit the entire estate, from vines to cellars, and see how a wine is made (a grand cru classé no less) from the harvesting of the grapes to the bottling of the end product.

The day was very informative. I knew nothing about the “harvesting” aspect of wine production. I learnt, for example, that the harvest for white wine is not carried out at the same time as the harvesting of grapes for reds and that the pressing of the grapes is different for red and white wines. We were also given a lot of other equally interesting details.

At lunch (which was delicious, by the way), we were lucky enough to have wine and food pairings, which I think is the best way to learn.

Was it a good experience for you?

Yes, definitely. The world of wine is a separate universe and it’s difficult to find your way in it. Vatel Bordeaux has given us the opportunity to become part of that world for a day so the outcome cannot but be positive.

For further information on Château Latour-Martillac:

http://www.latourmartillac.com/