Eric Bordelet Poire Granit 2021 750ml

Eric Bordelet Poire Granit 2021

Produced from pear trees estimated to be about 300 years old. Poiré Granit has 25-80 grams of sugar per liter, yet it doesn’t taste particularly sweet. This is due to the tannin and acidity, which Bordelet says is twice as high as the apple! Stunning as aperitif or with cheese or desserts. With just 4% alc/vol this can be enjoyed any time. Cider simply doesn’t get better than this !!

Eric Bordelet approaches Cider-making with the same intensity as a passionate oenologist brings to winemaking. Bordelet worked as sommelier in the leading 3 star Parisian restaurant, ‘Arpege’ where he became deeply familiar with the top winemakers and wineries of France. In 1992 he took over the tiny patch of family farmed orchards in Charchigné, in the heart of Normandy’s premium Cider producing area. Since then he has set about rescuing the ancient ‘heirloom’ varieties of pears and apples that produce tiny quantities and amazing flavour.

He has now planted many of these old heirloom varieties on his 23 ha property and has undertaken the complete rebuilding of the Chateau de Hauteville that once stood on the property before it burnt down nearly 100 years ago. The Chateau is not to be rebuilt for his family to live in, rather the cellars at the base provide the perfect environment for him to patiently age his Calvados and on top of that are larger facilities for the production of his ciders and finally at the top a viewing platform to see his orchards and surrounding landscape of southern Normandy.

Working organically, the fruit is dry-farmed, as Bordelet prefers to work with tiny very flavoursome apples and pears. ‘The fruit we work with looks quite different from what you’ll find in the grocery store. I know what each apple variety brings to the cider.’ says Eric, explaining that some Ciders can have about 20 different varieties used. And he adds, ‘I use about 40% of sweet apples, 40% bitter apples and 20% of acidic apples to get the right balance.’

History
After a long apprenticeship with some of the greatest names in the restaurant business and the world of wine, former sommelier, Eric Bordelet, took over the family business in 1992.
The property consists of 23 hectares of certified organic cider apple, perry and corme orchards.

Our commitment
Organic cultivation, alongside bio-dynamic soil treatments are currently the best adapted methods in terms of the quality of fruit. Our orchards have been certified organic since 1996.

Geography
Situated in southern Normandy on the massif Armorican, extending from the Domfrontais to the edge of the Mayenne and the Orne.
The property is situated on the great brioverien schists, “Grand Crus” sedimentary rocks from the Precambrian era.

Geology
“Argelette” is an iron rich reddish rock, schist like and quite soft, formed during the primary era and around 3 million years old.
“Granit” was formed in the tertiary era, hard because it is young, the fusion of two elements makes up the complexity of the soil and the limono-clay sub-soil.

Sidermaking
Harvested by hand, into wire baskets and then placed into paloxs. Due to the large number of varieties, fruits are selected from September through to December according to ripeness.
To create the final balance, each variety of fruit is processed individually: it is assembled, coarsely ground, gently pressed and the juice is racked and settled.
Ancestral fermentation in vats and then bottling takes place over several weeks, even months depending on the vintage, with more or less residual natural sugars (fructose) so no need to add any sucrose.
Sulphite in different forms (mineral or solution) is added. A total of SO² of between 50mg/l et 80mg/l depending on the vintage.