BORDEAUX: THE FIVE FIRSTS
‘All five are family owned, and their global fame can be traced back to the 17th century’
There are five châteaux in Bordeaux that truly need no introduction. Known as the first growths, or the premier cru classés, they are Haut-Brion, Lafite Rothschild, Mouton Rothschild, Latour and Margaux.
Lafite takes the title of largest of the five, at 110ha, with Haut-Brion the smallest at 53ha. All five are family owned, although by extremely well-heeled dynasties that tend to have powerhouse businesses behind them – so Prince Robert of Luxembourg at Haut-Brion, two branches of the Rothschilds at Lafite and Mouton, François Pinault of luxury group Kering at Latour, and Corinne Mentzelopoulos at Margaux. Their global fame can be traced back, give or take a few decades, to the mid-to-late 17th century, and picking apart the puzzle of what puts them at the top is a game that can keep you occupied for a lifetime...
Château Haut-Brion
PESSAC-LÉOGNAN
Château Haut-Brion has a fair claim to being the father of the first growths. It was here that the ‘New French Claret’ style was born, where winemaking techniques from barrel ageing to the burning of sulphur candles established a longer-living, more concentrated and rich style that elevated Bordeaux’s reputation globally. Haut-Brion still has its own cooperage on site.
In the cellar, Haut-Brion continued to set standards in the 20th century, being among the very first properties in the region to introduce stainless steel vats for winemaking – using an innovative two-tier design that was first envisaged by Jean-Bernard Delmas, the late father of Jean-Philippe Delmas, the current estate director. New cellars are currently under construction.
Located on warm soils, meaning its grapes ripen well every year, it’s among the earliest estates in Bordeaux to harvest. Haut-Brion is a wine that takes time to come around, but displays
