Prieuré de Ksara 2020
Château Ksara is the oldest wine-producing winery in Lebanon. It was founded in 1857 by French monks in the Bekaa Valley. In Lebanon, Ksara is the best known and most important producer. It produces a range of internationally acclaimed wines that are exported all over the world.
| Country | Lebanon |
| Region | Bekaa Valley |
| Wine maker | Château Ksara |
| Grape varieties | Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan, Mourvèdre, Cinsault |
| Terroir | The Bekaa has an altitude of 1000 meter up to 1600 meter above sea level. It has a semi-continental climate. The winters are cold with moderate rainfall and the summers are hot and dry. The altitude means that the hot summer days are balanced by cool evenings with a temperature difference of around 15°C. There is between 600 and 700mm of yearly rainfall, concentrated in autumn and winter. In contrast, the weather is dry during summer months and growing seasons, resulting in far fewer diseases. Pesticides and herbicides are not used, so the grapes are grown almost organically. The soil ranges from chalk, to clay and chalk, to clay and limestone, but it is always stony. |
| Harvest method | Handpicked. |
| Vinification | The grapes are hand-picked, harvested and destemmed. The Carignan is shortly vatted to keep the freshness, the Mourvèdre is kept for a longer time to extract the aroma and spices, and the Cabernet Sauvignon undergoes long skin contact to express length and elegance. The free flowing and press wine achieve the malolactic fermentation in cement vats. After malolactic fermentation, the juice rests in cement tanks for 14 to 18 months before blending. |
| Impression | A ruby hue, with aromas and flavours of black and red fruit, spice, licorice and garrigue. Medium bodied. |
| Did you know? | This wine is heritage red blend, named after the winery's landmark belltower, that harks back to the founding Jesuits who made it in the same concrete tanks in which the grapes are still fermented to this day. |