We’re thrilled to announce that Coralie de Boüard of La Fleur de Boüard in Bordeaux will be joining us again in Sarasota for our Forks & Corks Retail Wine Tasting, 3-5 p.m. on Saturday, January 30. Coralie will join more than a dozen international winery owners and winemakers at this special tasting event. Click here to make reservations online. Haven't had a chance to meet Coralie during past visits to Sarasota and Michael's Wine Cellar? Here's some background about her family's winery, compliments of TheWineCellarInsider.com: La Fleur de Bouard is owned by the de Bouard family. When Hubert de Bouard purchased the property in 1998, it was called La Fleur Saint Georges. Following the age old custom of renaming a wine after a change in ownership, they rechristened their new property, La Fleur de Bouard. The de Bouard family are well known for their Bordeaux wine vineyards in St. Emilion, which include Chateau Angelus and Chateau Bellevue as well as their estate in the Cotes de Francs appellation, Chateau de-Francs. Hubert de Bouard purchased the estate in 1998 from a French insurance company. 1998 marked the debut vintage for La Fleur de Bouard. However, today Chateau La Fleur de Bouard is managed by Coralie de Bouard, the daughter of Hubert de Bouard. Chateau La Fleur de Bouard sits on the plateau of Lalande de Pomerol in Neac, which is not far from Pomerol. The terroir is clay and sandy soil with a base of gravel underneath. The 25 hectare vineyard of La Fleur de Bouard is planted to 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. The vine density is 6,500 vines per hectare in the oldest vines. However, new plantings take place at 8,500 vines per hectare. The average age of the vines at La Fleur de Bouard is 25 years old. However, they have old vines that are close to 45 years of age in their vineyards as well. In 2011, La Fleur de Bouard completed a multi-year reconstruction of their entire wine making making facilities and the chateau, making this one of the most modern estates in the Right Bank. The most striking new feature is their hanging, reverse, stainless steel, conical vats. To produce the wine of La Fleur de Bouard, the grapes go through a pre-fermentation, cold maceration at 10 degrees Celsius and a 3-4 week maceration in stainless steel tanks. Alcoholic fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation is performed in a combination of 75% new oak barrels, 15% one year old barrels and 10% takes place in tank. The wine is aged on its lies in 75%, new French oak barrels for between 18-24 months, depending on the character of the vintage. The blend for Chateau La Fleur de Bouard is usually quite close to the planted acreage. Chateau La Fleur de Bouard produces a special cuvee called La Plus La Fleur de Bouard. The grapes come from a small, 2 hectare parcel of very old Merlot vines planted in their clay soils. This high quality, character filled wine is the perfect ringer for a Pomerol tasting. It is the benchmark for any wine from the Lalande de Pomerol appellation. The blend of La Fleur de Bouard as well as that of Le Plus varies depending on the vintage. It ranges from 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc to almost 100% Merlot. However, for Le Plus, the majority of the time, it’s usually closer to 100% Merlot, while La Fleur de Bouard is closer to the vineyard plantings. There is a second wine, La Fleur Saint Georges. The average annual production for La Fleur de Bouard is close to 7,000 cases per year.