A guide to the Saint-Estèphe wine region
Saint-Estèphe is found in Bordeaux’s Médoc subregion, north of the city of Bordeaux itself. The Médoc is a massive cog in the engines of the fine wine trade; illustrious properties like Château Lafite, Margaux and Latour make their home here. Sandwiched between the Gironde estuary and Atlantic coastline, Saint-Estèphe is situated in the northern half of the Médoc Peninsula, on the border with the Pauillac appellation. There are approximately 1255 hectares of vineyards in the zone, overwhelmingly planted to red grape varieties.
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Classifications
Saint-Estèphe is home to five classified chateau that were included in the famous 1855 classification; the ranking was devised in the 19th century to stratify Bordeaux’s top estates from First to Fifth Growth. Two very famous and prestigious Second Growths belong to the appellation: Cos d’Estournel and Château Montrose. There are no First Growth chateaux located in the zone.
However, there are a wealth of estates in Saint-Estèphe classified as ‘Cru Bourgeois’. This ranking was revised in 2020 and includes three tiers: Crus Bourgeois, Crus Bourgeois Superieurs and Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels. Two ‘Exceptionnels’, Chateaux Lillian Ladouys and Le Crock, are from Saint-Estèphe. Although this newer hierarchy lacks the glamour of its 1855 counterpart, any wine label that bears the label ‘Cru Bourgeois’ offers a guarantee of premium quality.
Regional changes
Contemporary Saint-Estèphe is very much in the business of producing consistently fruit-driven and delicious wines; the overall standard maintained by its winegrowers is now laudably high. However, the zone has undergone a stylistic revolution in recent times, due to a combination of global warming and changing viticultural priorities.
Much of the changes have their origins in the soil structure of the Saint-Estèphe appellation. The Pauillac, Margaux and Saint-Julien sub-zones are famous for their free-draining gravel terroir. This is ideally suited to ripening Cabernet Sauvignon, as gravel warms up the vineyards due to its ability to reflect heat.
As it happens, there are small bands of gravel in Saint-Estèphe, largely situated close to the Gironde estuary. These sites are as coveted as any in neighbouring Pauillac. Cabernet Sauvignon planted here will produce concentrated, structured and tannic wines. Cos d’Estournel is one such property that consistently makes superlative Cabernet Sauvignon in every vintage. It is renowned for its free-draining gravels and a type of sandstone called alios. The maritime climate and moderating influence of the Gironde provides adequate rainfall and protection against frost.
Climate and geography
Gravel, however, is not a defining feature of Saint-Estèphe’s terroir. Much of the land is composed of clay over a limestone subsoil, while vineyards located in the northern and western parts of the zone are planted on light sandy soils. Such conditions are more suited to Merlot and Cabernet Franc, two grapes that have traditionally played a supporting role in the Médoc. Unfortunately, a great deal of Cabernet Sauvignon was also planted on Saint-Estèphe’s cold clay soils in the 20th century and struggled to ripen fully. The resulting wines were tough, with a surfeit of tannin that tended to overshadow the fruit for over a decade. Towards the end of 1990s, Saint-Estèphe’s reputation was really starting to slide. Its wine community knew something had to be done.
The solution was to rip-up Cabernet Sauvignon and replace it with a variety that could thrive in the appellation’s calcareous soils. Merlot responds exceptionally well to Saint-Estèphe’s clay/limestone terroir, producing a voluptuous, rich and aromatic red wine with moderate tannin and acidity. Meanwhile, Cabernet Franc seems to love sandy soils, achieving good levels of ripeness even in cooler vintages. The grape’s inherent freshness and perfume are much appreciated by the appellation’s winemakers. In hotter years, they add up to 25% of the variety, as Cabernet Franc is commonly used to maintain balance, freshness and poise.
2020 was such a vintage. In fact, the last three growing seasons in Bordeaux have been characterised by their hot and dry summers, leading to drought in the vineyards. If such conditions arise, then the clay/limestone of Saint-Estèphe’s interior offers a decisive advantage. Clay is a very porous soil, celebrated for its water-retentive qualities. Yet it is not particularly permeable and even during a prolonged period of drought, vineyards will have access to vital reserves of water. This keeps the vine healthy and productive, protecting against hydric stress.
Saint-Estèphe wine
Stylistically, modern Saint-Estèphe wines can be (roughly) divided into two distinct categories. Several estates, including Beau-Site, Calon-Segur, Lafon-Rochet, Meyney and Château Montrose prefer to keep Cabernet Sauvignon at the heart of their wines. If the terroir of a particular property lends itself to successfully ripening the grape, then it’s a wise decision.
Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant blends from Saint-Estephe are magnificent; rich, powerfully structured and long-lived. Although they may take a few years to properly reveal their charms (the tannins need a bit of time to soften), such wines can reach glorious heights in maturity. The 1985 vintage of Château Lafon-Rochet, tasted in 2020, was still packed full of opulent fruit, with a sweet oaky nose and aromas of coffee and tobacco. It represented the very pinnacle of fine red.
But there isn’t one paradigm to slavishly follow in Saint-Estèphe. Many respected chateaux—Le Boscq and Haut-Marbuzet are two notable examples—prefer to use at least 45-55% Merlot in their blends. In cooler vintages, Cabernet Sauvignon will often play a (relatively) small role in Chateau Petit Bocq, another of Saint-Estèphe’s sorely underrated producers.
This style of wine from the appellation is softer and more approachable in its youth. They may not equal the longevity of great wines like Montrose and Cos d’Estournel, but their succulent charms offer ample compensation. A recent vintage of Petit Bocq typified everything that is wonderful about Bordeaux wines that place Merlot front and centre. Ripe aromas of plum, fruitcake and freshly cut grass were supported by velvety tannins and fine acidity.
Saint-Estèphe is also very attractively priced. This is partly due to the appellation has traditionally lacked the prestige of Pauillac, but also a lack of avarice in the zone. The winegrowing community want their vintages to be enjoyed by the widest audience possible, not kept in collector storage cases. This, combined with the consistently high standards of winemaking and stylistic diversity, makes Saint-Estèphe an attractive proposition for the Bordeaux lover and fine wine aficionado alike.