Château Sainte-Marie

The estate

The house at Sainte-Marie was once kept by the monks of the abbey of La Sauve Majeure, 4 kilometers away, and burned in the 18th century; tradition has it that pilgrims coming back from Santiago de Compostela stopped for its spring, and a mass was said on the property until May 1997. Charles Cocks and Édouard Féret, whose Bordeaux et ses vins was the reference book of the Bordeaux trade, list the Domaine de Sainte-Marie from 1893 under L. Maquenne, at 12 tonneaux (the old Bordeaux measure of a crop, 900 liters, or 4 barrels) of red and 35 of white, and his widow still held it in 1922. In 1956 Édouard Mondon bought it, to graze his cows and to make wine. He trained his nephew Gilles Dupuch for 10 years; Gilles inherited in 1982 and went on to preside over the Entre-deux-Mers. His youngest son, Stéphane Dupuch, took over in 1997, and Stéphane’s wife, Laurence, who arrived in 1996, runs administration and finance. Stéphane added a Crémant de Bordeaux and wines with Syrah, and in 2009 the couple bought Château Peyredon Lagravette, in Listrac.

The vines spread over 2 hills, and after a geological study the family chose parcels beyond the property as well: Les Vieilles Vignes, 25 hectares around Sainte-Marie at Targon, mainly on clay and limestone; Alios, 8 kilometers away, 14 hectares on clayey gravel; the Marcon parcel at La Sauve, on outcropping starfish limestone; and a south-facing parcel at Croignon, on Pyrenean gravel over clay. A parcel of Sémillon and Merlot is more than 100 years old. Planting runs from 5,000 to 10,000 vines a hectare, the vines average about 25 years, and the estate keeps 8 beehives and is working toward Bee Friendly certification. The cellar has a sorting table, temperature control, a pneumatic press and barrels. The Vieilles Vignes white, an Entre-deux-Mers, is 70% Sauvignon Blanc, 20% Sémillon and 10% Muscadelle, fermented at 15 to 18°C and aged in stainless steel on its lees, stirred every week; the Vieilles Vignes red, a Bordeaux Supérieur, is 72% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, macerated and fermented 3 to 5 weeks in stainless steel and aged 8 months, 80% in steel vats and 20% in French oak barrels that have held 1 or 2 wines before.

At a glance

Appellation

Entre-deux-Mers, white; Bordeaux Supérieur, red; also rosé, clairet and Crémant de Bordeaux

Commune

Targon

Classification

No classification

Owner

Stéphane Dupuch, since 1997; the Dupuch-Mondon family since 1956

Direction

Laurence Dupuch, administration and finance; Géraldine Lussiez, logistics and production

Vineyard

Les Vieilles Vignes, 25 hectares at Targon; Alios, 14 hectares; parcels at La Sauve and Croignon

Ground

Clay and limestone; clayey gravel; starfish limestone; Pyrenean gravel over clay

Grapes

Vieilles Vignes white: Sauvignon Blanc 70%, Sémillon 20%, Muscadelle 10%; red: Merlot 72%, Cabernet Sauvignon 28%

Cellar

Sorting table, temperature control, pneumatic press; stainless steel and French oak barrels

Wines

Château Sainte-Marie Vieilles Vignes, white and red; Alios; Madlys; Astérie; rosé; clairet; Crémant

The house

Also Château Peyredon Lagravette, Listrac, since 2009

In history

The Maquenne family, 1893 to 1922; 12 tonneaux of red and 35 of white in 1893

Sources: Château Sainte-Marie, the estate · Château Sainte-Marie, a family passion · Château Sainte-Marie, a promise of quality · Château Sainte-Marie, the vineyard · Château Sainte-Marie, Château Peyredon Lagravette · Château Sainte-Marie, the shop · Château Sainte-Marie, Vieilles Vignes white · Château Sainte-Marie, Vieilles Vignes red