Another great private tasting experience at Chateau Fonplegade (“fountain of plenty”), a beautiful estate and winery in St. Emilion. The tour including a ride up into the vineyards. I asked a lot of questions all of which or gracious hostess Fanny thoroughly answered. A lot of classy in the soil which is ideal for Merlot. Fonplegade is a biodynamic site, so no pesticides/herbicides and only native yeast. The workers were cutting back some of the leaves on some of the vines to expose the grapes to more sun to get just a bit more ripeness before harvest. In the barrel room, they were also using terracotta urns (new experiment) and concrete eggs which for some of the storage and to go into the final blend along with the typical barrel aged. We also tasted wife from their sister estate in Pomerol. Interestingly 70% of the people who come for tours are from the U.S. the tour was quite enjoyable and informative. Recommended!