Château du Glana

The château

Du Glana was born of the division of Château Saint-Pierre, and its château was built in 1870, in white limestone and red brick, by the architect Nadeau of Blaye for a M. Cayx. It was still a small holding in 1922, when Charles Cocks and Édouard Féret, whose Bordeaux et ses vins was the reference book of the Bordeaux trade, list the Château du Glana under André Kaelin at 12 tonneaux (the old Bordeaux measure of a crop, 900 liters, or 4 barrels), among the crus artisans et crus paysans. Gabriel Meffre, a nurseryman from the Vaucluse, bought it in 1961, and the vineyard grew with parcels bought from Château Lagrange. The vat room, barrel cellar, offices and reception hall were renovated in 2003. Ludovic Meffre runs it with his brother Julien, sons of Jean-Paul Meffre; the family also owns Château Lalande in Saint-Julien, and the brothers run Château Bellegrave in Pauillac.

The vineyard lies on Garonne gravel, planted 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot at 7,000 vines a hectare, about 25 years old. The grapes are soaked cold and stay 3 weeks in temperature-controlled vats, and the wine spends 12 months in French oak barrels, 30% new, for about 120,000 bottles. The second wine is Pavillon du Glana, also called Château Sirène.

At a glance

Appellation

Saint-Julien

Commune

Saint-Julien-Beychevelle

Classification

No classification

Owners

The Meffre family, since 1961

Direction

Ludovic and Julien Meffre

Vineyard

7,000 vines a hectare, about 25 years old

Soil

Garonne gravel Terroir of Saint-Julien →

Grapes

Cabernet Sauvignon 65%, Merlot 35%

Cellar

Cold soak; 3 weeks in vat; 12 months in French oak, 30% new

Production

About 120,000 bottles

Wines

Château du Glana; Pavillon du Glana, also called Château Sirène

The house

Also Château Lalande, Saint-Julien, and Château Bellegrave, Pauillac

In history

André Kaelin’s, at 12 tonneaux, among the crus artisans et crus paysans in 1922