Château Léoville Poyferré

The estate

The history of Léoville goes back to 1638, and for most of it there was no Poyferré, only 1 Léoville. William Franck, whose Traité sur les vins du Médoc first appeared in 1824, ranked that single Léoville a second growth, at 2,000 to 2,100 francs the tonneau (the old Bordeaux measure of a crop, 900 liters, or 4 barrels), and André Jullien’s Topographie de tous les vignobles connus still did so in 1832. The divisions and successions that broke the estate into 3 left Baron Jean-Marie de Poyferré with a share, and in 1840 he added his name to it. The brokers ranked it a second growth in 1855.

The Cuvelier family bought Léoville Poyferré and Moulin Riche from the Lawtons in 1920 and have held them since. Sara Lecompte Cuvelier took over as general director from her cousin Didier Cuvelier in 2018; Isabelle Davin is the château’s oenologist and Didier Thomann the cellar master. The vineyard runs to 80 hectares of deep gravel along the Gironde, with Château Moulin Riche a single block of 20, the vines 38 years old on average, planted 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. It has held Haute Valeur Environnementale (High Environmental Value, the French state’s environmental certification for farms), level 3, since the 2017 vintage. Pavillon de Léoville Poyferré is the second wine; Moulin Riche, established in 1885 on an older gravel terrace, is a wine of its own.

The style is polished and led by Cabernet, and a cool year shows it well. The 2021, which I tasted in October 2025, came out of a hard season of frost and mildew and made something classic of it: freshness, fine tannins, precise fruit and real elegance.

At a glance

Appellation

Saint-Julien

Classification

Deuxième Cru Classé 1855

Owners

The Cuvelier family, since 1920

Direction

Sara Lecompte Cuvelier, general director, since 2018; Didier Thomann, cellar master

Oenologist

Isabelle Davin

Vineyard

80 hectares, with Château Moulin Riche a single block of 20; vines 38 years old on average

Ground

Deep gravel along the Gironde

Grapes

Cabernet Sauvignon 68%, Merlot 24%, Cabernet Franc 6%, Petit Verdot 2%

Farming

Haute Valeur Environnementale, level 3, since the 2017 vintage

Wines

Château Léoville Poyferré; Pavillon de Léoville Poyferré; Château Moulin Riche, a separate wine

Sources: Château Léoville Poyferré, the property · Château Léoville Poyferré, the wines · Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux, Léoville Poyferré · CIVB, the classifications of 1855 · Decanter, the 3 Léovilles · Guto Assumpção on Instagram, Château Léoville Poyferré 2021, October 19, 2025