Chateau de Sales Pomerol Bordeaux, Complete Guide

Learn everything about Chateau de Sales Pomerol with wine tasting notes and wine with food pairing tips. Learn the best vintages, a history of the property, information on the vineyards, winemaking. If you want to read about other important, Bordeaux Chateaux: Links to all Bordeaux Wine Producer Profiles

Chateau de Sales History, Overview

Chateau de Sales has been in the same family hands since 1464. This probably sets a record in Bordeaux for continuous ownership of a chateau and vineyard for a single-family. In 1464, Bertrand de Sauvanelles agreed to rent and manage the estate. That means Chateau de Sales has remained in the same family hands for close to 6 centuries!

The Chateau was created in the early 1600s, which was also quite rare for Pomerol at the time, as the region has never been the home to the type of grand chateaux found in the Left Bank. In fact, the chateau for de Sales is one of the few, truly regal chateau in the entire Pomerol appellation. Chateau de Sales did not become a working Bordeaux vineyard until some time in the late 1700s.

Chateau de Sales Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Winemaking

The large 47.8-hectare vineyard of Chateau de Sales is planted to 73% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12% Cabernet Franc. The terroir is gravel, sand, and a bit of clay in the soils. On average, the vines are 50 years of age. However, there are some parcels with old vines that are more than 60 years of age.

The vineyard of Chateau de Sales is unusual for not just its size, but because the vines are in 1, large parcel. Although it is interesting to note they also own 3 hectares in Lalande de Pomerol that they are allowed to include in their Pomerol.

Chateau de Sales is a massive vineyard for Pomerol. In fact, Chateau de Sales is the largest vineyard in the Pomerol appellation. When you think about it, with its enormous production, it could be more at home in the Medoc, than in the Right Bank.

In total, they own 90 hectares in Pomerol, with close to half of their land being cultivated with vines. The vines are located not too far from Clos Rene and Chateau lEnclos. The remaining portion of their estate is devoted to greenery, parkland, and forests.

To produce the wine of Chateau de Sales, the wine is vinified in traditional, large concrete vats ranging from 100 to 180 hectoliters. Malolactic fermentation is conducted in vats. The wine is aged in vat for between 12-14 months before it’s aged in barrels for an additional 6 months.

The barrel aging program is complex as Chateau de Sales uses a diverse array of barrels. Only 5% of new, French oak barrels are used in the barrel aging process. The rest of the barrels are on average split between 30% one-year-old barrels, 30% two-year-old barrels and the remaining wood is 3 years old.

Only 50% of the wine is aged in barrel. The remainder of the wine is aged in tanks. More than 10,000 cases of Chateau de Sales are produced each year. There is a second wine, which used to be called Clos de Sales. Today, the second wine is sold under the name of Chateau Chantalouette.

The best vintages of Chateau de Sales are: 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2009 and 2005. Starting with the 2020 vintage, it looks like there is a reemergence in the wines here as 2020 is the finest vintage of Chateau de Sales ever produced!

When to Drink Chateau de Sales, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time

Chateau de Sales can be enjoyed on the young side with an hour of decanting. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment. However, I find the wine is usually better with 3-6 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. In the best years, Chateau de Sales will best between 4 to 12 years of age after the vintage.

Serving and Decanting Chateau de Sales with Wine, Food, Pairing Tips

Chateau de Sales is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.

Chateau de Sales is best paired with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau de Sales is also good when matched with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta.

Chateau de Sales is not my favorite style of Pomerol wine. The wines are light, dominated by red fruits and on the rustic side of the style range for Pomerol.

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