Chateau Beychevelle St. Julien Bordeaux Wine

Chateau Beychevelle, St. Julien, Bordeaux wine producer, Fourth Growth, profile, with wine tasting notes, wine ratings, a history of the property, information on wine making and terroir, along with wine tasting reviews. If you want to read about other important, Bordeaux Chateaux: Links to all Bordeaux Wine Producer Profiles

Chateau Beychevelle, due to the classic stunning architecture of the chateau and its beautiful gardens is often referred to by its fans as the Bordeaux version of Versailles. However, the history of Beychevelle dates back much further than that. In its formative years, it was the property of the Foix Candale family. The Foix Candale were well established in Bordeaux by 1446, as they already possessed Chateau d’Issan in Margaux. In 1565, Bishop François de Foix Candale ordered the chateau to be constructed. Eventually, Beychevelle became the property of the Dukes of Epernon.

To understand the Duke’s power, it’s important to note that all the ships sailing in front of Beychevelle were ordered to lower their sails as a sign of respect. In fact, that is where Beychevelle took its name. Beychevelle, when translated from the dialect of the times, which was Baisse Voile, means lower the sails.

Beychevelle was sold and sold again to a myriad of people. Because of the enormous cost to keep the estate up to date, each owner allowed Beychevelle to slide into further states of neglect. This pattern changed in 1757, when the Marquis François-Etienne de Brassier renovated and rebuilt the estate.

In 1825, Beychevelle was bought by Pierre-François Guestier. Guestier was a popular Bordeaux wine merchant and the mayor of St. Julien. If the name sounds familiar, that’s because the Guestier family, and the Barton family, the owners of Leoville Barton formed a Bordeaux wine negociants business that is still in business today, Barton and Guestier. Guestier strove to rebuild the reputation that Beychevelle earned at the start of the century. His efforts made sure Beychevelle was included in the 1855 Classification of the Medoc. In 1875, Armand Heine, cousin of the famous German poet, Heinrich Heine purchased Chateau Beychevelle. Heine was responsible for building the north wing of the chateau. He also managed to replant the vineyard of Chateau Beychevelle following the phylloxera epidemic.

After Armand Heine died in 1883, Marie-Amélie Kohn, his American wife from Louisiana, managed Chateau Beychevelle. The Heine family continued to manage the Left Bank estate for several generations.

In 1970, Aymar Achille-Fould took over Chateau Beychevelle. In 1984, Achille-Fould took on a partner for the first time the GMF group. That trend continued in 1988 when the GMF group partnered with the Japanese Suntory company, who were already familiar with Bordeaux, as they owned the neighboring estate, Chateau Lagrange. In February, 2011, Chateau Beychevelle took on new owners when Suntory along with Pierre Castel purchased the St. Julien estate.

The Chateau Beychevelle, St. Julien vineyard cover 90 hectares. The terroir consists of deep, gravel based soils. The vineyard is planted to 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The vine density of 10,000 vines per hectare. On average, the vines are close to 28 years of age. The wine of Chateau Beuchevelle is vinified in a combination of temperature controlled, stainless steel and concrete vats. Malolactic fermentation takes place in tank. The wine of Chateau Beychevelle is aged in an average of 50% new, French oak barrels for about 18 months. There is a second wine, Admiral de Beychevelle. The estate also owns vines in the Haut Medoc appellation which are produced and sold under name of Les Brulieres de Beychevelle.

Beychevelle is a traditionally made and traditionally styled Bordeaux wine full of cassis, earth, spice and tobacco notes that ages well. But wine in most recent vintages lacks excitement. However, they took on a new winemaker, Romain Ducolomb who was previously working at Chateau Clinet in Pomerol. The first vintage for the young Romain Ducolomb is the 2012. It will be interesting to see what he does with the wine of Chateau Beychevelle.

http://www.beychevelle.com/