Château de Fontenille

Vines have been grown at Château de Fontenille since the 13th century, with a UNESCO-protected pilgrimage route running through the vineyards to neighbouring Abbaye de la Sauve-Majeure, whose monks tended the vines for hundreds of years.

Stéphane Defraine bought the property in 1989 and has gradually renovated this historic estate. Stéphane is hugely passionate about the Entre-Deux-Mers region and is notably president of the local ‘syndicat’, representing the interests of the AOC’s estates and growers. Château de Fontenille now comprises 63 hectares of vines divided into 67 individual plots. Planted at an elevation of 110 metres, between the Garonne and Dordogne rivers, the vineyard’s free-draining gravel and clay soils, coupled with the area's high winds, ensure healthy, balanced grapes packed with flavour at harvest.

Château de Fontenille’s Bordeaux Rouge is a classic Bordeaux blend of 80% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, half aged in oak barrels (one-third of which were new) and half in stainless steel tank. The unoaked Entre-Deux-Mers Blanc, made from vines with an average age of 17 years, is a blend of 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 20% Sauvignon Gris, 20% Semillon and 10% Muscadelle. It also undergoes some lees ageing to add texture and richness to the wine.

‘Les Survivantes’ celebrates the remarkable ability of old vines to endure severe hardship. In February 1956, the Entre-Deux-Mers reported its coldest month since 1900 and very few vines endured the frost. Château de Fontenille’s Sémillon vines were some of the few to survive and these 70-year-old vines now make up half of the ‘Les Survivantes’ blend (the other half being equal parts Sauvignon Gris and Sauvignon Blanc). The resulting wine is aged in 50% new and 50% second-use oak barrels for six months on its fine lees, with regular bâtonnage, creating an elegant and richly textured expression with a distinct waxy character and layers of spice.

Château Fontenille’s Cadillac Côtes de Bordeaux is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Merlot, grown on south and south-east facing slopes which benefit from maximum sunlight exposure. The final wine is aged in new oak barrels for 12 months before bottling, providing generous, rounded texture and notes of sweet spice and cinnamon. Cadillac Côtes de Bordeaux is an appellation for excellent value red wines solely made in the area around Cadillac, at the southern end of the Entre-Deux-Mers.