Clairet is a typical wine made exclusively in the Bordeaux region (not to be confused with Claret).  When we make the red wine we harvest at the ideal moment for the maturity of the grapes.  The grape must be at its ‘top’ in terms of sugar, PH, acidity…….  Here at Bellevue we harvest totally by hand, taking out the ‘rafle’ (the green part of the bunch), we then sort through the grapes on the sorting table, and put the grapes into the tank, which becomes full with all the harvest – the juices and the grapes.  The colour of the juice from the red grapes is transparent, it is the contact, with the red skins that will give the juice its red colouring.

The balance between the solid and the liquid part in the tank is crucial for the quality of the future red wine.  The proportions vary each year depending on the climate and how the grapes have matured.  Too much liquid and the wine will be light and too dilute for the top quality of wine that we make at Bellevue.  For this reason, after one night of maceration, we take a part of the liquid from the tanks.  With this juice, that has this ‘claire’ (light) colour, we make our Clairet wine, without pressing or making any oenological intervention.

Clairet is a classy, delicious and typically Bordeaux style wine that can be drunk fresh all year round with all sorts of dishes.  I am a real ‘clairet lover’!