Château Cadet-Bon

The estate

The vineyard sits on the southern slope of the Butte du Cadet and on the limestone plateau above it, at the very edge of the town, and it has been known since the 18th century. In 1867 Justin Bon was among the growers whose wines won Saint-Émilion its collective medal at the Paris exhibition, and Charles Cocks and Édouard Féret, whose Bordeaux et ses vins was the reference book of the Bordeaux trade, marked his Cadet as a 1er cru in 1868, at 5 to 7 tonneaux (the old Bordeaux measure of a crop, 900 liters, or 4 barrels). The Pinaud family kept the old French vines alive through the phylloxera years; by 1908 Cadet-Pineau-Bon was making 30 tonneaux, and in 1922 the guide, which still called the cru Cadet-Pinaud-Bon, praised a fine, perfumed, warm and generous wine much sought by the trade, and reported that André Dubuch, grandson of Mme Pinaud, had just bought it.

Michèle and Guy Richard, from winegrowing families of the Charente-Maritime, bought the estate in 2001. Stéphane Derenoncourt and Frédéric Massie have been the consultants since 2003; the house and cellars were restored in 2004, and in 2005 the Richards had Claude Bourguignon study the soils. The classification has not made life easy for them, or for those before them: Cadet-Bon was struck off in 1986, came back in 1996, was struck off again by the list of 2006 that the courts annulled, returned in 2012 and was confirmed in the list approved in September 2022.

The vineyard is 7 hectares, 6 of them in 1 piece facing south, over the astéries limestone: a shallow limestone, a deeper limestone and a clay, worked as 3 distinct grounds. It is planted 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, with vines 40 years old on average, and it has been farmed organically since 2017, with the certificate in 2021. The grapes are picked by hand and fermented in stainless steel, and the wine spends 2 years in the cellar, 40% of it in new barrels. About 18,000 bottles are made, each with the fountain of Cadet-Bon on its label.

At a glance

Appellation

Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

Commune

Saint-Émilion, at the edge of the town, on the south side of the Cadet hill

Classification

Grand Cru Classé in 2022; out in 1986, back in 1996, out in the annulled list of 2006, back in 2012

Owners

Michèle and Guy Richard, since 2001

Consultants

Stéphane Derenoncourt and Frédéric Massie, since 2003

Vineyard

7 hectares, 6 of them in 1 piece facing south; vines 40 years old on average

Ground

Shallow limestone, deeper limestone and clay, over the astéries limestone

Grapes

Merlot 80%, Cabernet Franc 20%

Farming

Organic since 2017; certified in 2021

Cellar

Picked by hand; stainless steel; 2 years in the cellar, 40% in new barrels

Production

About 18,000 bottles

Wines

Château Cadet-Bon

In history

Justin Bon’s Cadet, a 1er cru at 5 to 7 tonneaux, in 1868; 30 tonneaux in 1908

Sources: Château Cadet-Bon, the château · Association des Grands Crus Classés de Saint-Émilion, Château Cadet-Bon · Conseil des Vins de Saint-Émilion, Château Cadet-Bon · Institut National de l’Origine et de la Qualité, the Saint-Émilion classification of 2022