Pétrus is a red wine of the Pomerol region in Bordeaux which is made almost entirely from the Merlot grape. The estate belongs to the family of the Libourne wine merchant Moueix. Although the wines of Pomerol have never been classified, Pétrus is now one of the most highly rated and expensive Bordeaux wines, [1] along with the First Growths of the left bank of the Gironde, Château Latour, Château Lafite-Rothschild, Château Mouton Rothschild, Château Margaux and Château Haut-Brion, and Château Ausone and Château Cheval Blanc from the neighbouring right bank appellation of Saint-Émilion.
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Vineyard
The 28 acre (11.4 hectare) vineyard of Pétrus is located on a plateau in the eastern portion of the appellation. The soil consists of a high percentage of iron-rich clay, much more than is contained in surrounding properties. The vines, 95% of which are planted with Merlot and the remainder with Cabernet Franc, which is usually not included in the 'grand vin', have an average age of over 40 years. The estate was among the first in Bordeaux to implement green-harvesting as a way to lower crop yields and raise the quality of the remaining grapes. There is no château physically on the estate, and nowhere is it written on the label: this explains why it is simply referred to as Pétrus, and not Château Pétrus.
The Wines
Pétrus produces approximately 3,000 cases of wine in an average year. Grapes are hand-harvested and fermented in cement tanks, then aged for two years in new oak before bottling. A vintage of Petrus was included in the Halekulani Wine Tasting of 2000 In Thomas Harris's series of books about Dr Hannibal Lecter, Lecter serves a Chateau Pétrus Bordeaux with the "sweetbreads" of a Baltimore Philharmonic flautist.
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