Château Jean Faure

The château

Jean Faure stands on the heights where Saint-Émilion runs into Pomerol, with Cheval Blanc and La Dominique on one side and La Conseillante and L’Évangile on the other, and it takes its name from Jehan Faure, a jurat of Libourne in the 16th century. Its size once set it apart. Charles Cocks, in the 1850 edition of the guide that became Bordeaux et ses vins, put Jean-Faure among the sands of Saint-Émilion under the widow Chaperon-Grangère at 80 tonneaux (the old Bordeaux measure of a crop, 900 liters, or 4 barrels), more than any other grower of that group and more than most of the growths ranked above it. By 1874 the entry read Château Corbin et Jean-Faure, under Paul Chaperon, between the first and second growths of Saint-Émilion; the same Paul Chaperon held L’Évangile, over the line in Pomerol.

Jean Faure was ranked a first growth of Saint-Émilion in 1893 and a Grand Cru Classé in 1955. It lost the rank in 1986 and won it back in 2012, and the list of September 2022 kept it. Olivier Decelle bought the estate in 2004. Marie-Laure Latorre directs it, Louis Gadais is technical director and Stéphane Derenoncourt consults.

The vineyard is 18 hectares in one unbroken block, the same 18 recorded in 1893, on sandy clay over deep Oligocene clay that starts 40 centimeters down. It is planted 65% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot and 5% Malbec, so Cabernet Franc holds 11 of the 18 hectares, which is not how Saint-Émilion is usually planted. The vines are 45 years old on average, the oldest block planted in 1924, and yields run at 28 hectoliters a hectare. Conversion to organic farming began in 2014, with certification in 2017; biodynamic conversion followed from 2020, and in 2023 the estate was certified by Biodyvin, which it chose over Demeter. It built what that work needs: a drying room, a store for the herbs, a vat of over 200 liters for the infusions and a machine to stir them. The vineyard is worked 12 to 25 times a year, depending on the season.

The wine ferments in concrete vats of 80 hectoliters and spends 12 to 14 months in new and used barrels, large casks and concrete, less than 35% of it new. La Réserve de Jean Faure, made since 2019, is the second wine, and in 2023 a Cabernet Franc on its own was made in concrete eggs. In the 2018, which I tasted in February 2026, the Merlot brings depth and dark fruit, but the Cabernet Franc is the spine: tension, a floral lift and a savory, mineral register that keeps the wine disciplined in a warm, generous year.

At a glance

Appellation

Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

Commune

Saint-Émilion, on the Pomerol line, between Cheval Blanc and La Dominique on one side and La Conseillante and L’Évangile on the other

Classification

Grand Cru Classé in 1955; out in 1986; back in 2012 and 2022; Michelin Guide, 1 grape (2026)

Owner

Olivier Decelle, since 2004

Direction

Marie-Laure Latorre; Louis Gadais, technical director

Consultant

Stéphane Derenoncourt

Vineyard

18 hectares in one block; vines 45 years old on average, the oldest planted in 1924; 28 hectoliters a hectare

Soil

Sandy clay over deep Oligocene clay from 40 centimeters down Terroir of Saint-Émilion →

Grapes

Cabernet Franc 65%, Merlot 30%, Malbec 5%

Farming

Organic, certified in 2017; biodynamic, certified by Biodyvin in 2023

Cellar

Concrete vats of 80 hectoliters; 12 to 14 months in barrels, large casks and concrete, under 35% new

Wines

Château Jean Faure; La Réserve de Jean Faure, since 2019

In history

80 tonneaux in 1850, the largest grower on the sands of Saint-Émilion