Up early to Saint Emilion. To a building site.

To the extreme western end of the limestone ridge which is the 'raison d'etre' of Saint Emilion. To the site of our boldest winemaking venture yet. To Ch. Tertre Daugay.

A year ago we fused our buying and winemaking teams together under Dan Snook. And to spur the new team to aim high, I set a silly challenge. "Make me a P*trus" it was called.

Of course you cannot replicate Pétrus. I know that. But I have always regarded Pétrus as the ultimate in super-meticulous viticulture and super-sophisticated winemaking. I thought our winemakers – and all their contacts in the business – should try and create a wine using similar levels of perfectionism. Why not aim high? ... or higher? ... or even highest?

They have started on the project. There is as yet no name for the wine. We need something like 'Sans Contraints'. Any suggestions? But the wine is en route. It is being made at Château Tertre Daugay; a Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion.

Why?

There's a special situation that allows us to obtain the wine for a uniquely low price because the Château was recently sold, and is in full reconstruction of both its cellars and its reputation.

The new owner is my friend, Alexandre de Mallet who I've known forever. His father was a great friend of the Cassins (my 'French Parents'). Alexandre and his winemaker – the current top winemaker round here, Stéphane Derenoncourt – started improving the vineyards from a bit of a run-down state five years ago. But only actually bought the place last year. The new cellars are, as yet, but a deep hole in the rock.

Anyway Alexandre liked our suggestion and agreed that we (Jean-Marc and the team) could get involved in a joint venture with them to make a ‘super-cuvee’ in 2008. So that's what we tasted this morning in the little old cellars at Tertre Daugay. (Everyone who has ever been to Saint Emilion will know the little house perched on the first hill you see arriving from Bordeaux.)

The team have selected elements from the high 'balcony' terraced vineyards and the upper parts of the slopes to the south and west. There's no final blend yet but the possibilities are looking terrific. I write that just after tasting the 2008 Pétrus, Margaux, Lafite, Latour and Mouton. So I have the best wines in my palate memory. Which is now quite short term. But good for a few days still!

Doing a pre-release offer in a coupla months??

If we are happy that is. But after this morning I’m sure we will.

The basic idea is that even when you give vines and wine the best and most luxurious handling imaginable, it only costs about £10 a bottle. So if you can spot an opportunity to get wine from a superb – really superb – site at a fair price, you can offer your customer a wine between a half and a quarter – or more – of the price of something similar from a famous name Château. All you don't get is the bragging rights of the famous name. So? Who needs that? It’s the wine that matters.