The heart of the Suite
Sarabande
The slow movement of the Suite: a red wine that ages long in barrique and in bottle before we release it.
Sound of SarabandeAcoustic tasting (opens Spotify in a new window) To the vintagesIts role in the Suite
The movement that pauses.
A suite lives on the fact that its movements do not all share the same tempo. The Gigue leaps, the Allemande strides, the Sarabande pauses. It is the calm dance in triple time, and that is exactly its place among our red wines: in the middle, between Gigue and Allemande.
It is also our most many-voiced wine. So far every vintage has brought together all four red grape varieties of the Domaine, Merlot leading, each plot vinified separately and only blended at the end. And as with any slow movement, we give it time.
Claude Debussy · Sarabande · Pour le piano, L. 95
A TRIBUTE TO COMPLEXITY
Sarabande is the centerpiece of our suite – a wine that only develops its balance and unique identity over time.
In the glass
Dark fruit, graphite, plenty of time.
The Sarabande smells of dark berries and cocoa, with graphite beneath and the earthy notes of Cabernet Franc. On the palate it is calm and deep, with fine tannins and a long finish. With every year in bottle it gains in complexity.
- Dark berries
- Cocoa
- Graphite
- Earthy notes
- Grape varieties
- Merlot leading, with Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Cabernet Franc
- Ageing
- 16 to 18 months in barrique, then bottle ageing
- Serving
- 16–18 °C, aerate beforehand
- Soil
- Clay, with clay-gravel
The evening for it
For evenings when no one looks at the clock.
A long dinner among a few friends, then the fireplace. The Sarabande belongs to the second hour of the evening.
The vintages
One movement, played anew each year
Every vintage gets the time it needs in our cellar.
Library
Sarabande 2014
The earliest vintage of the series, sixteen months in barrique.
In the library
Ready to drink
Sarabande 2015
A dry year with a warm, dry late season and good ripeness.
To the vintage
Ready to drink
Sarabande 2016
A wet spring, then a dry summer and a slow, even ripening.
To the vintage
Maturing · c. 2027
Sarabande 2017
The year of the April frost in the Bordelais, followed by a calm season and a small harvest.
See it in the cellar
Maturing · c. 2028
Sarabande 2018
A demanding early summer, then ideal ripening weather from mid-July to the end of September.
See it in the cellar
Maturing · c. 2029
Sarabande 2019
A cool spring, a hot July and a harvest free of rot pressure.
See it in the cellar
Ageing in bottle
Sarabande 2020
See it in the cellar
Maturing · c. 2031
Sarabande 2021
See it in the cellar
Ageing in bottle
Sarabande 2022
See it in the cellar
Ageing before bottling
Sarabande 2024
See it in the cellar
Ageing before bottling
Sarabande 2025
See it in the cellar
Just harvested
Sarabande 2026
See it in the cellar
The repertoire
