Long Dai
The vintage
2018 vintage will probably go down as a benchmark vintage in Shandong province, with optimal ripening of the grapes and good balance in the wines. The season started with spring conditions that encouraged growth in the vineyard, with alternating scattered rain showers and sunny days. The flowering conditions from 1 to 4 June were very favourable for fruit set and resulted in good bunch numbers for all our grape varieties. August was marked by a period of intense drought, resulting in a uniform and high-quality veraison and an excellent state of health through to the end of the season. The harvest then took place under very good late-season conditions, giving a crop of exceptional quality. Meticulous zoning work in the plots, according to the ripening balance for each terrace, is carried out each year to select the optimal harvest date for each terroir. We were thus able to start the harvest with our first plots of Merlot on 12 September and finished with Cabernet Sauvignon from 5 to 13 October.
Location
Domaine de Long Dai is nestled at the heart of the Qiu Shan Valley in the Shandong Province in the North eastern part of China. The climate here is tempered by the influence of the Yellow Sea located a mere 20 km away. The region is highly dependent on agriculture and the milder winters combined with the granitic soils make it a place of interest to grow vines.
Terroir
The 34-ha vineyard is spread over 420 terraces, following the agricultural tradition in the region. This planting method respects both the landscape and the soil structure but also requires a lot of manual work as well as specially adapted machines. Everything has been organised to apply high-precision viticultural methods. Disbudding and green harvesting naturally reduce yields, allowing the grapes to reach full phenolic ripeness.
Winter in this region is dry and cold, but less severe than in other parts of the country. Building up soil around the feet of the vines is generally sufficient to ensure frost protection.
The summer is hot and includes a short period of rain in July and August, followed by two months of dry weather during the critical ripening period. The grapes do not ripen uniformly due to the terrace system, so the harvesting of each terrace is carried out in several passes to ensure that all grapes are picked at the optimum degree of ripeness.
Winemaking
This wine is produced using the traditional vinification methods for emblematic grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Controlled pumping over allows for gentle and respectful extraction of each cuvée to obtain a harmonious balance between tannic structure, roundness and length. This vintage, with its ripe fruit, allowed for maceration periods ranging from 20 to 24 days.
To maintain the harmony between richness and liveliness, Marselan, a grape variety originating in the Languedoc, is vinified in a gentler way, with the extraction facilitating a slow diffusion of aromatic and phenolic compounds. This makes it possible to improve the complexity and balance of our Bordeaux blend.
Following the malolactic fermentation, the first wine is blended after selection of the best tanks and then aged in oak barrels for 18 months. The combination of different proportions of new, one-year and two-year barrels is essential to enhance the final blend and reveal its full complexity.
Grapes
Tasting
Initially the nose is subtly imbued with black fruit such as blueberry, quickly giving way to spicy notes like nutmeg and liquorice. On aeration, it reveals floral scents of hawthorn and violet, emblematic of Marselan on the Long Dai terroir. The palate is concentrated and dominated by black fruit, with blueberry and blackberry followed by roasted and cocoa notes. It is finely structured by rich and elegant tannins supporting good length on the palate.
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