2012 Château Haut-Bergey

Château Haut-Bergery is a 57-acre estate in Leognan. Though its roots were planted in the 16th century, it has been owned since the 1990s by the Garcin-Cathiard family, who own several other Bordeaux estates, including Clos L’Eglise and Barde-Haut. They are also the entrepreneurs behind the garagiste wine Branson, which is made from Haut-Bergery vineyards. The Garcin-Cathiard family uses the consulting services of celebrity winemakers Michel Rolland and Jean-Luc Thunevin. The estate is planted to 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot. It produces about 55,000 bottles of its flagship wine annually. It also produces a second red wine, L’Etoile de Bergery, and two white wines. Robert M. Parker Jr. has written that the owners deserve credits for “one of the most amazing quality turnarounds I have ever seen. Haut-Bergery…(is) one of the stars of the Pessac-Leognan.”

Pessac-Léognan was created in 1987 from the northern part of the left bank Graves appellation. Before then it was simply part of Graves, or sometimes it was called Haut-Graves. Unlike many other Bordeaux appellations, Pessac-Léognan is known for both red and dry white wines, although its reds are more famous. The appellation includes ten communes and the area’s most important châteaux, including Château Haut-Brion, the only non-Médoc estate included in the 1855 Bordeaux classification. There are 2,964 acres of vineyards in Pessac-Léognan and 16 classified growth estates. The main red grapes grown are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, along with a small amount of Cabernet Franc. White grapes grown are Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, with a little Muscadelle. Pessac-Léognan is considered to have the best terroir of the greater Graves region.