Château La Branne

The estate

La Branne stands at Bégadan, on the Médoc peninsula, between ocean and estuary. The name is old: Charles Cocks and Édouard Féret, whose Bordeaux et ses vins was the reference book of the Bordeaux trade, list a La Branne there from 1883, under Hostein, among the crus bourgeois at 50 tonneaux (the old Bordeaux measure of a crop, 900 liters, or 4 barrels); it passed to the widow Hostein and then to her heirs, and in 1922 was joined to Cantecocut under F. Gabilleau. The present estate is a family property that started with only 2 hectares of vines and grew over the years. In 1999 the family began making the wine at the estate; it was recognized as a Cru Bourgeois in 2008, became a Cru Bourgeois Supérieur in the classification of 2020 and kept the rank in 2025.

The ground mixes sandy gravel, clayey gravel and clay and limestone, planted to Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot at 5,000 and 7,500 vines a hectare. Grass covers the whole vineyard, beehives have stood among the vines since 2020, and the estate has held Haute Valeur Environnementale (High Environmental Value, the French state’s environmental certification for farms) at level 3 since September 2016. Antoine Médeville, the oenologist, sets the picking dates and the blend. The 2023 is 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 23% Petit Verdot, picked by machine and aged 12 months in French oak barrels. Vincent Soufre de La Branne, a red made and aged without sulfites, spends 8 months in barrel.

At a glance

Appellation

Médoc

Commune

Bégadan

Classification

Cru Bourgeois Supérieur, 2020 and 2025; Cru Bourgeois in 2008

Owner

A family estate

Oenologist

Antoine Médeville

Vineyard

5,000 and 7,500 vines a hectare; grassed throughout

Ground

Sandy gravel, clayey gravel, clay and limestone

Grapes

The 2023: Cabernet Sauvignon 40%, Merlot 37%, Petit Verdot 23%

Farming

Haute Valeur Environnementale, level 3, since 2016

Cellar

Made at the estate since 1999; 12 months in French oak barrels

Wines

Château La Branne; Vincent Soufre de La Branne, without sulfites

In history

A La Branne at Bégadan, a cru bourgeois at 50 tonneaux, from 1883

Sources: Château La Branne · Château La Branne, the estate · Château La Branne, the 2023 · Château La Branne, Vincent Soufre de La Branne · Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc, Château la Branne · Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc, the classification of 2025 · Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc, the classification of 2020