This property has been in the ownership of the Tesseron Family, who also own Château LAFON ROCHET, for over two decades. They have been responsible for bringing it up to its current level, where it has more than justified its Fifth Growth status. Produced from vineyards planted on some of the best gravel soils of the appellation, at its peak it is exactly what you think of as quintessential Pauillac – big, powerful and dense with supple, well-rounded tannin and an intense fragrance of cassis and cedar. 1989 saw a significant upturn in quality. After the generally poor years between 1991 and 93, really only 97 has been lighter and less impressive. Alfred Tesseron and right hand man Jean-Michel Comme have been champions of non-intervention in the vineyards and the cellar and eschew state-of-the art technology, but nevertheless are consistently producing top quality wines. Biodynamic since 2004 and certified organic in 2010 has resulted in the current run of vintages showing very impressive results. Tesseron and Comme are continuing to pursue a “natural” wine philosophy since 2010 by introducing rows of Nomblot concrete eggs, developed at CHAPOUTIER, alongside the vats for ageing the wine. They are now also using amphora jars. It is yet to be seen how this new method of maturation will affect the wines but we’ll follow it with interest. (DM/NB)
