CHATEAU DE LA LIGNE
Bordeaux, France
The Chateau de la Ligne is located in Lignan de Bordeaux, a village of 700 inhabitants along the Dordogne River at the door of Saint Emilion.
According to locals, the wine was produced on the land surrounding the monastery of the Chateau for centuries but the earliest records of wine production date from 1874 when the estate released 174 barrels. At the time it was considered the highest quality wines in the area.
In the winter of 1956, one of the coldest that France had known, the vines froze and had to be uprooted. Following this dark episode of its history, the Chateau did not produce any bottle until Terry Cross, a Belfast native, fell in love with the place in the 90's. The first year of his installation he decided to replant 27 acres of the least productive clones, allowing the re-birth of the "Grand Cru" of Lignan, like the people say.