Fun with the 59 Cruse grave. My historical memory is the Cruse's were seriously implicated in some of the Bordeaux scandals around 73-74. I think one of them committed suicide, they had to give up some chateaux ownerships. But currently,a younger Emmanuel Cruse has been the owner and revivor of Ch d'Issan, one of my favorite Margaux crus (and beautiful castle fortress with moat) for at least 20 years. (From Wikipedia- Château d'Issan is co-owned by the Cruse family and Jacky Lorenzetti, with each owning 50% of the estate. The Cruse family has a long history with the estate, having owned it since 1945. In 2013, Jacky Lorenzetti, who also owns Château Pédesclaux and Château Lilian Ladouys, acquired his 50% stake. The estate is managed by Emmanuel Cruse, of the Cruse family.
Thanks Fred! I thought I'd checked Wikipedia but somehow missed this link. See Joel's comment for more background. Makes me wonder what was actually in this bottle? Did they blend in some Algerian wine to beef it up? I could not read the abv - that part of the label was illegible. Whatever it was, I loved it!
Paula
Fun with the 59 Cruse grave. My historical memory is the Cruse's were seriously implicated in some of the Bordeaux scandals around 73-74. I think one of them committed suicide, they had to give up some chateaux ownerships. But currently,a younger Emmanuel Cruse has been the owner and revivor of Ch d'Issan, one of my favorite Margaux crus (and beautiful castle fortress with moat) for at least 20 years. (From Wikipedia- Château d'Issan is co-owned by the Cruse family and Jacky Lorenzetti, with each owning 50% of the estate. The Cruse family has a long history with the estate, having owned it since 1945. In 2013, Jacky Lorenzetti, who also owns Château Pédesclaux and Château Lilian Ladouys, acquired his 50% stake. The estate is managed by Emmanuel Cruse, of the Cruse family.
Thanks Joel! I did some research but failed to uncover any of this information. Quite fascinating. Really appreciate the history!
Hey Paul - Cruse was a major negociant of French wines. Primarily Bordeaux, but they marketed wines from many regions of France. At one time they owned some prominent Chateaux in Bordeaux, including Pontet-Canet in Pauillac, and I think also d'Issan in Margaux. They were caught in several fraud cases, including adding cheap table wine to the blend of some of their best Chateaux, and had to sell those off (I think that was in the 1970's). The company still exists, but in a much reduced capacity, marketing and exporting lesser wines, primarily Vin de Pays type wines from France. Here are some examples: https://www.shoptrywine.com/nv-cruse-wine-company-french-tradition-sparkling-m.html and https://www.winesoftheworld.ie/red-wine/p/cruse-merlot. Also a decent but little known Bordeaux https://www.chateaulaujac.com/en/the-cruse-family-bordeaux-wine-negociants/. More information can be found on the Wikipedia article about the Cruse Family https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruse_family.
Needless to say, I guess I qualify as a bona fide wine geek (lol)
Thanks Fred! I thought I'd checked Wikipedia but somehow missed this link. See Joel's comment for more background. Makes me wonder what was actually in this bottle? Did they blend in some Algerian wine to beef it up? I could not read the abv - that part of the label was illegible. Whatever it was, I loved it!
Great read, Paul!
As I strain my now most faulty memory...a part of the Cruse fiasco involved adding ox blood to some of that 1970's red wine that needed a darker hue.
This story gets better and weirder with every new comment! But I'm quite sure there was no ox blood in the wine I tasted!