Soul-mate

Château Pindefleurs is part of the Saint-Émilion vineyard, for which it represents perfect glorification. In the beginning, it was marked by brilliant and celebrated personalities: Antoine de Sèze was mayor of Saint-Émilion in 1625, whereas one of his descendants, Romain, famous barrister of the Bordeaux Parliament, became famous during the Revolution by defending Louis XVI beside Malesherbes. As regards Adolphe Charoulet, the estate has him to thank for its first gold medal in 1907. Château Pindefleurs then belonged to Micheline Dior, cousin of the great couturier, before being purchased in 2006 by Dominique Lauret, of the Mestreguilhem family, owners of Château Pipeau, a neighbouring grand cru.

Today, the 15 hectares of Château Pindefleurs enjoy the benefits of a thirty-year-old vineyard, combining merlot and cabernet planted in clay-limestone soil, which is mainly gravelly. The estate uses the most modern techniques of vinification: carefully-dosed sprays against disease, cluster thinning, early leaf-stripping, gentle maceration in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats, frequent pumping over, traditional vertical pressing, ageing in oak barrels which are renewed every year, racking every 3 months, etc.

Transmitted from one generation of devotees to another, there is a strong, genuine bond between the owner, Dominique Lauret-Mestreguilhem, and Château Pindefleurs. She makes a particularly well-named wine, for the powerful bouquet which it offers, and the happy marriage between body and delicacy. Depth and refinement, strength and finesse balance each other. The complex aroma is punctuated by long-lasting touches of fully-ripe red berries. Drunk as a young wine, Château Pindefleurs allows its fresh fruitiness to blossom. Kept in a cellar, it unrolls a long and silky taste in the mouth, the mark of the Grands Crus of Saint-Émilion.

Surface area 15 hectares

Terroir Mainly gravelly, partly clay-limestone

Grape varieties 90% merlot, 5% cabernet sauvignon, 5% cabernet franc.

Average age of the vines 35 years.

Density 7000 vines per hectare.

Vinification Long fermentation, traditional method with temperature control.

Aging In new French oak barrels for 12 months. Racking every three months. .

Annual production 90 000 bottles (château-bottling after 18 months’ ageing).

Other wine Château Pipeau.