Francois Lurton's Wine Worldview

I first learned of the international wine empire built by Bordeaux’s Lurton family when I hosted vintner Jacques Lurton at a wine symposium in 2008.

Impressed by Jacques then, I was thrilled to meet his brother, Francois, recently at a small trade luncheon featuring Francois’ Argentine “Piedra Negra” (Black Stone) wines at the chic (and delicious) Greenwich Village bistro Bobo.

There are now 14 Lurton family members working in a dynasty begun in 1650 and expanded into a global wine network by paterfamilias André Lurton, now 85, whose Vignobles Lurton sold four million bottles in 2011 and have a turnover of 21.8 million Euros. André led the battle against urbanization of Bordeaux’s prime vineyards and helped to block the high speed TGV train from tearing up historically important Bordeaux vignobles.

In the early 1990s, Jacques and Francois formed their own wine company and began investing in new, far-flung properties. The extensive travel needed to develop and oversee so many investments led Jacques to exit the partnership a few years ago, keeping for himself only his own Bordeaux chateau and a vineyard on Kangaroo Island, Australia. Meanwhile, Francois continued expanding the Lurton empire in France, Spain, Chile and Argentina.

In New York on June 11, Francois proved to be as gracious and open as his brother. Serving his “Alta Coleccion” Pinot Gris 2012, he explained that the grape variety for this wine was new in Argentina, and resulted from an error by the French nursery supplying his vines, which were meant to be chardonnay. No one realized the mistake until the vines budded out.

The wine turned out to be full, rich and delicious. It’s now one of Francois’s most successful products, selling for about $10.99 a bottle in the U.S. market.

Errors like this are common when European suppliers send vines, barrels or corks abroad. Francois now has agents in Europe who check every shipment before sealing his supplies into containers heading for South America.

Argentina doesn’t make it easy, either. Lurton’s supplies are held at its ports indefinitely and inspecting his winery aggressively with SWAT teams of customs agents who check minutiae of label texts, winery records and inventories.

The labor situation in Argentina is full of surprises, too. Experienced vineyard workers are easy to find in Mendoza, and their wages are half those of their European counterparts, but they are one quarter as productive: an Argentine pruner will trim 200 vines in the time a French pruner trims 800. You do the math.

Despite the obstacles found in Argentina, Francois is excited by the success of his wines there. Real pioneers in the Alta Uco Valley, he and his brother were the first to plant grapes there, betting that its stony soils and high altitude would allow grapes to retain their natural acidity, with low yields and consequently higher quality than was possible in the existing, hot vineyards closer to Mendoza.

Grinning, Francois said, “I have the oldest vines in Alta Uco—they’re 15 years old!”

His plantings spurred the influx of other French vintners to the region and created the surge in exports of malbec. Once seen as plonky bulk wine, Argentine malbec has now entered the super-premium category.

Along with consultant Michel Rolland, the Lurtons recognized that Argentine malbec is distinctively different from its French progenitor (a/k/a “cot.”). The berries are bigger, the skins are softer, the tannins are less harsh.

Francois realized that the variety could be taken to a new level by careful control of crop size, irrigation, canopy management, technological innovations and judicious use of fine oak aging.

“I always want natural acidity in my wines,” he said. “I make them to drink with food.”

Although he follows organic and bio-dynamic practices, he doesn’t boast about them.

“I don’t want to be trapped in the small world of the organic people,” he explained.

With his global worldview, Francois understands that most people like to drink supple wines that don’t represent an intellectual challenge. He also knows that people in different regions appreciate wines differently. His “Corte Friulano” white blend is popular in Europe but too woody for the American market. Here, the Pinot Gris is a slam dunk.

His Piedra Negra Malbec is aromatic, approachable, fresh and complex enough to win Parker scores in the 90s. And the Chinese, new to wine and drinking reds for heart health, like it too.

After meeting both Lurton brothers, I agree with Francois, who says, “Terroir is soil, climate, and the person who owns the place.”