Chateau Kirwan 22nd July 2008

We visited Chateau Kirwan in Cantenac on a very hot day last week. The chateau is easy to get to, hop on the 705 bus at Ravezies and 45 minutes later get off at Cantenac Bourg. There is a very visible sign pointing to the left and 5 minutes walk away is Kirwan.



We were shown around by a very competent bilingual Cindy Aubier, a bilingual tourism student who had spent some time in Philadelphia in the USA.



Chateau Kirwan produces two wines, the grand vin which contains a lot of Cabernet Sauvignon for ageing which is recommended to be kept for at least ten years by which time it has transformed, and the second wine Les Charmes which is usually a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc though in 2002 40-45% Cabernet Sauvignon was used.



In the barrel ageing room, a lot of the barrels were covered with wine due to carbonic pressure but this will be fixed next year when the chateau switches to using glass bungs.



We tasted two wines, the 2002 Les Charmes and then the 2003 grand vin. The 2002 Les Charmes was very drinkable and the 2003 still had some oak to meld and tannins to integrate but it could also be drunk now.

Website : Chateau Kirwan