Château Pontet-Canet Winery

Château Pontet-Canet in Pauillac has been around since the 18th century. It has been run by the Tesseron family since 1975, who have consistently developed it into one of the best wine estates in the world. Justine Tesseron is currently the third generation at the helm.

As a Cinquième Grand Crus Classé estate, Pontet-Canet has long stood for outstanding Pauillac, for dense wines with great ageing potential. But the family wanted to go even further and decided to convert the estate to organic and biodynamic farming - a path that none of the renowned châteaux had taken before and which was also characterised by setbacks.

the first Merlot plots were certified in 2014. 2010 is the first vintage in which the entire château with its 81 hectares of vineyards, which are divided into 100 plots with a total of 800,000 vines, is both organically and biodynamically certified (Ecocert and Biodyvin). The vineyard has also been Demeter-certified since 2014.

In terms of grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon takes centre stage, followed by Merlot. There is also a small proportion of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.

One of the new cultivation practices is the abandonment of foliage pruning in favour of manual intertwining of the long shoots. This allows the vines to self-regulate, making defoliation and green harvesting superfluous. Infusions and herbal preparations are used. Horses replace machines. "The biodynamic approach has given our wines more depth and at the same time produced more precise and silky tannins. The length of flavour on the palate has gained minerality," says Justine Tesseron.

Natural and traditional methods have also found their way into the cellar. For example, barrels are used for ageing, as well as concrete vats, which give the wine more purity of fruit. Amphorae made from various materials have also been available since 2017. "We try to limit interventions as much as possible in order to preserve the wholeness of the fruit."

photos: Château Pontet-Canet