Behind the vine

Lilian Barton Sartorius - Chateau Leoville Barton & Langoa Barton - Bordeaux, France

When do you think you fell in love with wine, enough to make a career of it?

Wine has always been in my life. I did my very first part time harvest when I was 7 year’s old, and I very vaguely remember when I was about 5 years old, sitting on a barrel at Langoa when the bugs are at the top and not tight, sticking my finger in the wine and sucking it, sadly I can’t remember the vintage.

In adulthood, I went to work in a shipping company in Hong Kong which I enjoyed very much, but at the request of my Father who needed help in the office, I came back to Bordeaux and started working in earnest. And gradually I started to enjoy working in the wine business more and more.

What story does your wine tell?

Of course our wines like to recall the long history in our family as we bought Langoa in 1821 and part of Leoville in 1826, but also our concept of a nicely balanced wine which respects the terroir, giving the advantage of finesse and elegance. We also recall the conviviality of wine which brings all generations and nations together.

What misconceptions about wine do you think people should forget?

I think for the moment there are three major ones, the first being that it is a job for people who retire because we sit around looking at our grapes growing, then we do a little work during harvest, and then back and relax and sip wine all day.

Another is that Bordeaux is too expensive. Yes the price of classified growths have increased, but there are still people who buy them. Then there are prices of petits chateaux and some good quality ones (Cru Bourgeois), which haven’t moved for at least 15 years, or the generics where it is the same price as in 1990.

And last point is the idea that you can only drink bio/natural wine because other wines are full of pesticides and treatments – the truth is that very few pesticides are used, nearly no weed killer and as little treatments as possible - if we don’t use anything, we couldn’t produce grapes, and the little we use is not found in the wine.

What great things about wine do you think people should remember?

Wine is a historical and traditional drink which is often mentioned in the Bible – many years ago it was drunk even by children (although I don’t encourage too much that today!) because it was considered safer than water.

When drinking wine, the most important think to know is whether you like it or not regardless of what other people say, because taste is so subjective. I do prefer my red wine with nice food like, chicken or lamb, cheese, most vegetables, and of course sharing wine with friends is the best.

What is a piece of advice you would give to a woman interested in breaking into the wine world?

Luckily today there is no barrier as there was 40 years ago between men and women working in the wine trade. But for anyone to join, you have to like wine, to know your own tastes so you can make your own opinion up about what you like or dislike. You have to know the basics how wine is made and of course it’s better to know the names of some countries and areas where wine is made and the main varietals, but also remember that in wine you might need to work long hours ( but then part is work and part is fun). You also need patience and modesty.

Who is a woman that inspired you?

Luckily today there are a lot of admirable women working in wine be it in the wineries, promoting, buying or selling or some journalists, the list would be a little too long, but I might mention a couple of names because they started a new era like Serena Sutcliffe probably one of the first women wine writers or Jenny Bailey Dobson who was the 2nd woman wine maker in the Medoc, and making delicious wine. She has now returned to New Zealand.

Where can women find your wine?

Today our wines can be found with many wine merchants in London and England and nowadays it is probably important to know that they can be found on internet, but as it is nicer to speak to someone, I think some of the wine merchants deliver to your house.

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