Château Rahoul

The estate

In 1646 the chevalier Guillaume Rahoul built the chartreuse and gave it his name, and vines followed in the 18th century. Charles Cocks and Édouard Féret, whose Bordeaux et ses vins was the reference book of the Bordeaux trade, found it in 1868 in the first category of Portets, spelled Raoul, a small red-wine holding of Mme de Camiran; by 1922 it belonged to Maxime d’Anglade. The modern story starts in the 1970s. Only after David Robson bought it was Rahoul sold in bottle; Len Evans, a leading figure of Australian wine, bought it in 1978, and after he sold it the estate joined the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux in 1984, 1 of only a handful of Graves in its ranks. Alain Thiénot acquired it in 1986 and entrusted it to Dourthe in 2007, and in 2012 the old orangerie became the cellar where the whites ferment in barrel.

Parcels at Illats, Podensac and Saint-Selve have joined the original Tour du Château vines at Portets, on sandy gravel and clay-gravel. The estate has used reasoned protection since 1995, works its soils only mechanically, and is certified Haute Valeur Environnementale (High Environmental Value, the French state’s environmental certification for farms), level 3, and Terra Vitis. The 2025 red is 53% Merlot, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Petit Verdot, aged 12 months in barrel; the white, 68% Sémillon and 32% Sauvignon Blanc, spends 8 to 9 months in barrel. Pierre Estorge manages the estate and Frédéric Bonnaffous is chief winemaker; the second wine is L’Orangerie de Rahoul.

At a glance

Appellation

Graves, red and white

Commune

Portets, with parcels at Illats, Podensac and Saint-Selve

Classification

No classification

Owner

Alain Thiénot, since 1986

Operator

Dourthe, since 2007

Direction

Pierre Estorge, estate manager; Frédéric Bonnaffous, chief winemaker

Ground

Sandy gravel and clay-gravel

Grapes

The 2025 red: Merlot 53%, Cabernet Sauvignon 29%, Petit Verdot 18%; the white: Sémillon 68%, Sauvignon Blanc 32%

Farming

Haute Valeur Environnementale, level 3; Terra Vitis

Cellar

Red 12 months in barrel; white 8 to 9 months in barrel, in the orangerie since 2012

Wines

Château Rahoul, red and white; L’Orangerie de Rahoul

In history

Raoul, first category of Portets, under Mme de Camiran in 1868; Maxime d’Anglade in 1922

Sources: Dourthe, Château Rahoul · Dourthe, Château Rahoul, in French · Dourthe, Château Rahoul red · Dourthe, Château Rahoul white · Dourthe, L’Orangerie de Rahoul · Syndicat des Graves, Château Rahoul