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ADVERTORIAL
“88-89” is an environmentally ambitious wine, in that sense, a testament to Maison A. De Luze's constant willingness to innovate, and a reflection of the company's commitment to sustainability and environmental protection.
But it's also a vintage that lives up to the trading house's well-earned reputation for quality, a reputation built over the course of two centuries. The name itself pays homage to that tradition. “88-89” is a reference to the historic Bordeaux address – 88-89 Quai des Chartron – where Baron Alfred De Luze first started the business back in 1820.
“Our heritage is precious, and Baron Alfred de Luze's thirst for discovery continues to inspire us every day,” says Xavier Migeot, General Manager at Maison A. de Luze.
Production was limited to 6,000 bottles, and made with grapes harvested from a single, carefully selected vineyard plot in the Entre-Deux-Mers region, east of Bordeaux. Tucked between the Garonne River to the south and Dordogne River to the north, Entre-Deux-Mers boasts an incredibly long history of wine production, dating back nearly 2,000 years to the Romans and made especially famous by the Benedictine Monks during the Middle Ages.
As Xavier Migeot explains, the different grape varieties used to make “88-89” were harvested in accordance with their respective ripening schedules, and vinified separately to bring out their unique qualities and flavours. The end result is a wine that combines rich tannins with notes of plum, crushed blackberry, black current, and a touch of wild thyme.
Bottled with a colourful, locally-designed label, the “88-89” reserve is a worthy ambassador for the Bordeaux region as a whole, and for Maison A. de Luze in particular.
During its more than 200 years in operation, the trading house has played a major role in helping develop and promote Bordeaux's world-renowned reputation for quality. Today, with more than 110 collaborators around the globe, Maison A. de Luze has over 200 partner vineyards, and exports more than 30 million bottles a year to approximately 75 countries, China included.
“As on our first day, our passion and curiosity for the vineyards of Bordeaux, France and the world remain the watchwords of our trading house, which aspires to become increasingly modern and sustainable” Xavier Migeot explains.
In planning its first eco-designed wine, Maison A. de Luze placed special emphasis not just on the growing and harvesting aspects of the production cycle, but on logistics, transportation and even packaging. The goal was to make “88-89” as low-impact as possible, and that meant removing bottle overcaps, for example, choosing lightweight bottles, and even opting for vegetable-based glue for the labels.
Not surprisingly, the labels are also made from recycled paper. But for Maison A. de Luze, aesthetics matter too, and so for the label design, the trading house turned to Alice Bottigliero, a local Bordeaux artist. An exceptional wine, after all, deserves an exceptional label.
Alice Bottigliero runs an independent art direction and graphic design studio called Forme Brute, founded in 2016, and specialises in a food and beverage-related clientele. She has a passion for cut-out paper collage, and a style that features bright, contrasting colors. The illustration she came up with for the “88-89” label is no exception.
Designed to look like a tarot card, with the numbers featured prominently in the four corners, the image contains a collection of symbols representing Maison A. de Luze's place as a pioneer in the world of wine trading.
The illustration is meant to evoke the company's ambition and history, and like the limited edition “88-89” wine itself, convey a mixture of tradition with modern, forward thinking.
Photo: © Milena Delorme
