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  • Chateau de Fieuzal

  • Chateau de Pez

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    Roederer`s stewardship of de Pez since they took it over in 1995 is a study in how to improve a property. They have had a long look at the mix of vine varieties and the soils and have tried to match them more precisely, planting more Merlot where appropriate. They have also changed the trellising arrangements for the vines to promote better and more even ripening, while in the cellar, retention of the wooden fermenting vats, now temperature controlled, and more attention to hygiene mean the wines are suppler, fruitier and somewhat more attractive when young.

  • Chateau Deyrem Valentin

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    Of all the chateaux overlooked in the 1855 Bordeaux classification, few are as deserving as Margaux property Deyrem Valentin. It is well sited, on the same mix of gravel, sand and clay soils that underpin the appellation`s most prestigious addresses. The vines average 40 years old, and there is one parcel where some are almost 100, placing them among the Medoc’s very oldest. The consultant oenologist is Hubert de Bouard, owner of Chateau Angelus. As Jeff Leve notes on thewinecellarinsider, Deyrem Valentin competes with many classified growths for a lot less money.

  • Chateau Doisy-Daene

  • Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou

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    Between Beychevelle to the north and Latour across the commune boundary to the south in Pauillac, and running almost down to the Gironde, sits one of the clutch of 5 St Julien second growths, Ducru-Beaucaillou. Beychevelle is in fact a parent of Ducru; in 1642, when the British were just getting going on the killing spree now referred to as the English Civil War, the Beychevelle estate was broken up to settle a debt, and one of the resulting parcels would become what is now Ducru-Beaucaillou. The name didn`t come till later.

  • Chateau Duhart-Milon

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  • Chateau Durfort-Vivens

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    Durfort-Vivens had a good 19th century. The 1844 was priced higher than any other Margaux wine except Chateau Margaux itself. Commentator, wine connoisseur and future American president Thomas Jefferson rated Durfort-Vivens alongside Lafite, Latour and Margaux. The 1855 classification placed it as a second growth. Things weren’t so good through most of the 20th century. In the 1930s, it was bought by Margaux and used to make that chateau’s second wine. In the 1960s, it was sold on to the Lurton family, but without its chateau.

  • Chateau d`Issan

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  • Chateau d`Yquem

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  • Chateau Ferriere

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    At only eight hectares, Ferriere is positively titchy by Bordeaux standards. Claire Villars is in charge, who runs La Gurgue and Haut-Bages-Liberal, both of which we like very much. The estate has excellent terroir, being situated on several plots of deep gravel and the wines have always tended towards the muscular end of Margaux in a similar way to La Gurgue and are immensely satisfying. To all intents and purposes Ferriere can be considered a `new` property, having been rescued from the clutches of Lascombes and only produced its first vintage from new cellars in 1992.

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