Description
Baron Philippe de Rothschild Château d’Armailhac grand cru classé en 2005 – Pauillac
Climatic conditions
Weather conditions for the 2005 vintage were unusual, since the year was 0.3° C colder than the average for the last forty years, mainly due to cooler than normal nights. The period from April to September was particularly dry, with only 313 mm of rainfall being recorded between the start of the year and the harvest, compared with an average of 602 mm. However, these exceptional conditions did not affect the usual pace of the vegetation cycle. Flowering occurred for all three varieties around 5 June and veraison took place a few days earlier than the average, between 1 and 8 August. The grapes were harvested between 21 September and 6 October in conditions that may be described as ideal. Although the atypically dry weather meant that yields were relatively low, the wines show rich, powerful and stylish tannins. Overall, the profile of the 2005 vintage is rather reminiscent of 1976, 1982 and 1995.
History
Since 1933, when Baron Philippe finally took full ownership, the history of Château d’Armailhac has been inseparable from that of Château Mouton Rothschild. Its vast outbuildings house the technical and agricultural equipment needed to farm the two estates’ vineyards. The house, a fine though incomplete white stone building in which the steward of the estates lived from 1947 to 1966, is not now used for residential purposes.
The Château d’Armailhac vineyard is made up of three groups of parcels, the Plateau des Levantines et de l’Obélisque, the Plateau de Pibran and the Croupe de Béhéré.
1989
Baroness Philippine decides to restore its original identity to Mouton d’Armailhacq, giving it the name Château d’Armailhac.
