Bordeaux group sends wine under the sea in a bid to accelerate ageing

By Nigel Huddleston

Published: 20 July, 2015

Bordeaux wine group CA Grands Crus has sent a selection of wines to a secret cellar 90 metres under the sea to explore the effects of ageing.

The samples will rest at constant temperature with no sunlight for between nine and 24 months with the expectation that ageing will be accelerated.

The bottles are off the coast of Brittany and sealed with wax.

The selection includes several wines from the 2011 vintage: Château Grand-Puy Ducasse 5ème Grand Cru Classé en 1855 from Pauillac; Château Meyney from Saint-Estèphe; Château de Rayne Vigneau 1er Grand Cru Classé from Sauternes; Château La Tour de Mons from Margaux; and Château Blaignan from Médoc.

There are four 2013 vintage wines from Château de Santenay: the whites Mercurey and Saint-Aubin En Vesvau; and the reds Mercurey 1er Cru Les Puillets and Aloxe-Corton.

The project is being undertaken by Amphoris, a company created in 2014 by Denis Drouin and Pierre Recoules, two engineers specialising in offshore and submarine operations.

CA Grands Crus manages the Bordeaux properties of Group Crédit Agricole.

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