I've only lived in Bordeaux for a few years, but I recall very clearly our first trip here in the late 1990's. I remember our first hotel room near the Cour de l'Intendance, how nice people were in general (coming from Paris, not that surprising). I remember a man smiling at me on the street and saying "Vous allez bien vite, Monsieur".  I remember too, how horrible it was to drive in Bordeaux during the tram construction, but now that that's over for the moment, it's a great asset. We don't own or need a car here. I also recall being here on September 11, 2001 and the way things unravelled in that context.

But before that first trip to Pessac to meet Jean-Bernard Delmas and his son Jean-Philippe who is now in charge, I met the then President Joan Dillon, Duchesse de Mouchy. (Her husband Philippe, an exceptional man,  recently passed away and I wrote a short note about him.) Much is made of "social networking" these days, but I met Joan on a Compuserve Forum! We then exchanged a few emails and eventually set up an appointment at the offices of Domaine Clarence Dillon. Founded on June 1, 1935. The company was named after the American financier Clarence Dillon, Joan's grandfather, who purchased Château Haut-Brion in 1935. La Duchesse is an amazing person who has faced numerous serious challenges in life and it has been one of my greatest pleasures to work with her these many years.Unlike the image you might get in your mind of someone like Joan, in those early days she literally installed and re-installed Windows 95 herself, many, many times! (As did we all, W95 was a crock.)

Joan's son, HRH Prince Robert of Luxemburg has now taken over and he has continued the family tradition of generosity and kindness. I've also enjoyed working many years with Robert who is in no way distant and on the contrary treats us as honored guests and friends, always showing that Dillon kindness and generosity.

Of course there's no way to mention real people of Bordeaux without getting to Jean-Bernard and Jean-Philippe Delmas. More about thes two important Bordeaux people is found on Wikipedia. The elder, J-B was literally born at Château Haut-Brion where his fother had worked before him. He grew up there as well to become of the most respected wine makers in the world. After being introduced to us in Pessac in his office, he made a wide gesture to include the entire property and said "Vous êtes chez vous." Over the years, both of the Delmas, more reserved than the American ownership and management, have still been a huge thrill to associate with.

Twice I was seated next to Jean-Bernard when he would comment on the spectacular wines we were tasting at lunches or dinners. Some of these were huge events and some were with only a few people. They were always passionately interesting and stimulating. We've had the pleasure of seeing J-B from time to time at Bordeaux events.

A long time ago I emailed Jean-Philippe to ask him how long to decant 2 bottles of Château Haut-Brion White they had sent to us for a dinner with journalists. He smiled (electronically) when he said "you don't decant white wine". Ok, I was younger then. You could say we've watched Jean-Philippe "grow up". He's certainly deservedly become a bright light in Bordeaux.

Our last meeting in Pessac was a more somber occasion, but the team there are still friends as well as close collaborators in our ongoing projects: Jean-Philippe Delmas, Alain Puginier and Bertrand Fondraz are some real people of Bordeaux I will not forget, even if the day comes when we are not working for them.

From Decanter, today: The Duc de Mouchy, former managing director of Chateau Haut-Brion, has died aged 88.

My wife and I were privileged to meet Philiipe de Noailles (Duc de Mouchy) in 1997 and to work with him for many years. He was an extraordinay man in the way he treated people and in his enormous generosity. After calling him "Monsieur le Duc" twice he said, "Enough of that, please call me Philippe". Not only did Philippe and Joan invite us to numerous functions at Château Haut-Brion and at Philippe's ancestral home, Mouchy, but they also took us to a memorable lunch where Philippe had the waiter bring out a bottle of 1989 Château Haut-Brion from his personal stock for lunch at the Grill of the George V, which he referred to as his "canteen".

It's meeting people like Philippe, Duc de Mouchy and Joan, Duchesse de Mouchy that has made our work so satisfying. Philippe was a person in real life that actors would love to play on stage. Superficially cantankerous and Churchill-like in his humor, he would sometimes say things like "ça fait un peu Marie-Chantal" and then pull out an aged rum from the previous century. Being at the office with Philippe present was like being in a French stage play. Marie-Pierre: "Monsieur le Duc ?" Philippe: "Quoi encore ?"

Thank you Philippe - Monsieur le Duc -  for the wonderful memories you've given us and for being yourself.