Anecdotes about the domain
For me, being a winemaker is the love of the earth, of the terroir and sublimating the quintessence of what nature gives us. I don't make standard wines. Moreover, I don't make the same blends depending on the vintage. My greatest pride is to keep our Cru Bourgeois status every year since 2008. The Cuvée du Plantier is one of my favorite vintages. It is the name of a parcel that I have been looking for for 3 or 4 years, my rare pearl. As a winemaker, I do stylistic exercises just like when I was a musician. One cuvée that I particularly like is our rosé that I call "jus de méric" because it reflects our terroir. I have two gurus: Silver, a surfer and character from the comic book "Marvel" because he is cosmic and more powerful than the earthly superheroes. The second one is Jimmy Hendrix, but there is no need to describe a legend, is there? My oldest memory related to wine is with my grandfather who served me village wine, a cooking wine. But I quickly recovered with my first good glass of wine at the age of 21, a white horse that I had accompanied simply with cheese and pepper. One word comes to mind: Excellence. The Nord-Médoc is not well known because it is far from everything but it is wildly beautiful!
The domain's short story
Located in the north of the Medoc, Château Méric is situated on the tip of the Graves. The particularity of this terroir was that the communes formed 3 islands before the marshes were drained. The result: a filtering soil with a well exposed and sunny terroir that is even called the "Bordeaux Camarague". The vines flourish here without any water or thermal stress since they are well anchored and can seek water far away in the water table. Here, the Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot grape varieties express themselves, but not only! With this climate, a whole ecosystem has been established. Those who are nicknamed "Méric's neighbors" are all the fauna that is present on the estate: frogs, deer, roe deer, foxes... They accompany us especially during our harvest that we do late for more roundness... The history of the domain goes back to the year 1100 when the knight Méric buried his armor under an oak tree of the family domain for having kept his promise of having returned alive from the crusades. His family will exploit during several generations what was the biggest domain of the Medoc. The château was named cru bourgeois in 1868. After a musical career, I took over the estate in 1999. I reclassified, planted and harvested 15 hectares. As the son of farmers from the Monts du Lyonnais, this reconversion was an obvious choice. There is a connivance between me and the world of wine since always. Making wine is the continuation of my creativity. Just like music, you have to know how to compile the pieces - in this case the grape varieties - in search of the perfect harmony.
The winemaker's pride
If you want to set the mood on your table, choose the wines of Marius Chala that go boom boom boom when you open them! Not surprising when the winemaker is a former techno music star! In 1999 Marius put away the turntables and took over with the same enthusiasm the family estate in the Médoc, where he benefits from a well exposed terroir and a favorable microclimate between the Gironde estuary and the ocean. He cultivates exclusively noble grape varieties on gravel which favor the elaboration of wines full of finesse and with a good aptitude for aging.
Pictures of the domain
