What is now Pichon Baron originally formed part of the same estate as Pichon Lalande. In 1850, on his deathbed, Baron Joseph de Pichon Longueville split his estate into two. 20 hectares went to his two sons, and were thereafter known as Pichon Baron, and 30 hectares went to his three daughters, and thereafter became Pichon (Comtesse de) Lalande. That male/female split between Baron and Comtesse has been said to inform the style of the two wines ever after, with Pichon Baron in particular said to be structured and muscular, and Pichon Lalande said to be sensuous – though the fact of the matter is that both these properties hold some of the very best terroir anywhere in Medoc and truly great wines can be made at both, irrespective of dated flights of fancy about gender.

After the Second World War, Pichon Baron became increasingly run down, and the wines were far from the best in the chateau’s history. Things took a turn for the better in 1987, when the insurance group AXA Millesimes purchased the property and began to pour in investment. Under the guidance of Jean-Michel Cazes of Lynch-Bages, the vineyards at Pichon Baron were replanted, the chateau was renovated and the winemaking facilities were completely rebuilt. In 2000, Christian Seely was appointed manager, and his tenure has been marked by many great iterations of Pichon Baron. In part, he has achieved this by cutting down the volume of grand vin to focus on the very best terroir, a gravelly plateau opposite Chateau Latour. (NT 04/08/25)