🏰 Château Cantemerle
Also known as: Cantemerle
A southern Médoc estate in Macau, a medieval fortified house bought by Jehan de Villeneuve in 1579 and owned by the SMABTP group since 1981; a fifth growth added to the 1855 list.
Château Cantemerle is a wine estate in Macau, in the south of the Médoc. According to the estate, it began in the Middle Ages as a fortified house on a mound surrounded by wide moats, and its lords appear in feudal texts from the 13th century. In 1579 Jehan de Villeneuve, president of the Parliament of Bordeaux, bought the seigneury; the Villeneuve family and, from 1892, the Dubos family held it for centuries, and in 1981 the SMABTP group bought it.
According to the estate, the property covers 200 ha, of which 98 ha are vines on gravel soils: 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc. The wines are Cantemerle and Les Allées de Cantemerle.
Haut-Médoc is a protected designation of origin (PDO) for red wines from a delimited area of the southern Médoc. Cantemerle was missing from the list published on 18 April 1855; according to the estate, after Baroness Caroline de Villeneuve presented evidence, it was officially added as a fifth growth on 16 September 1855, and the Conseil des Grands Crus Classés en 1855 lists it among the Cinquièmes Crus.
Why it matters to you. A classified growth does not have to carry a village PDO: Cantemerle is labelled Haut-Médoc. The WHO reminds: there is no safe level of alcohol.
Facts
| Year founded | seigneury known since the 13th century; Jehan de Villeneuve 1579; SMABTP group since 1981 |
|---|---|
| Region | Macau, Haut-Médoc (Bordeaux) |
| Country | France |
| Legal basis | estate; PDO Haut-Médoc, Cinquième Cru of the 1855 classification |
How it connects to Wine
🏰 Château Cantemerle → kind of → 📜 Haut-Médoc ← main grape of ← 🍇 Cabernet Sauvignon → kind of → 🍇 Grape varieties → kind of → 🍷 Wine
Links
- Part of
- 📜 Haut-Médoc
- Related to
- 📍 Médoc (Macau, southern Médoc)
Frequently asked questions
Is it true that Cantemerle was on the original 1855 list?
No. According to the estate, it was missing from the list of 18 April 1855 and was officially added as a fifth growth on 16 September 1855.
Who owns Château Cantemerle?
The SMABTP group, since 1981, according to the estate.
Which grapes are planted at Cantemerle?
According to the estate, 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc on 98 ha.
Similar
🏰 Château Lafite Rothschild · 🏰 Château Margaux · 🏰 Château Léoville-Las Cases · 🏰 Château Gruaud-Larose · 🏰 Château Cantenac-Brown · 🏰 Château Beychevelle
⚠️ Wine contains alcohol: adults only, drink in moderation. Wine usually contains sulphites; egg white or milk proteins are sometimes used for fining — important for allergies and for vegans.
Sources
- Château Cantemerle (official site): Nos origines
- Château Cantemerle (official site): the estate and vineyard
- Conseil des Grands Crus Classés en 1855: the 1855 classification
- Wikidata: Château Cantemerle (Q1090388)
- eAmbrosia — EU register of geographical indications: PDO «Haut-Médoc»
- WHO/Europe: No level of alcohol consumption is safe for our health (04.01.2023)