Château Couhins is a

Bordeaux wine Bordeaux wine ( oc, vin de Bordèu, french: vin de Bordeaux) is produced in the Bordeaux region of southwest France, around the city of Bordeaux, on the Garonne River. To the north of the city the Dordogne River joins the Garonne forming the ...

estate from the

Pessac-Léognan Pessac-Léognan () is a wine growing area and Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée, in the northern part of the Graves region of Bordeaux. Unlike most Bordeaux appellations, Pessac-Léognan is equally famous for both red and (dry) white wines, althou ...

appellation An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...

, ranked among the ''Grands'' ''Crus Classés'' for dry white wine in the

Classification of Graves wine The wines of Graves in the wine-growing region of Bordeaux were classified in 1953 by a jury appointed by Institute National des Appellations d'Origine, and approved by the Minister of Agriculture in August of that year. The selection was revised w ...

of 1959. The

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, ...

is located in close Southern vicinity of the city of

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...

, in the commune of

Villenave-d'Ornon Villenave d’Ornon (; Gascon: ''Vilanava d’Ornon'') is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is the fourth-largest suburb of the city of Bordeaux, and is located to its south side. Thus, it is ...

. The estate also produces a red ''Grand vin'', red and dry white

second wine Second wine or second label ( French: ''Second vin'') is a term commonly associated with Bordeaux wine to refer to a second label wine made from '' cuvee'' not selected for use in the ''Grand vin'' or first label. In some cases a third wine or e ...

s named "''Couhins La Gravette''", and a red third wine, "''La Dame de Couhins''".

History

Once a large and celebrated estate, owned by the Gasqueton and Hanappier families, it became the property of '' Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique'' (INRA) in 1968, which became in 2020. The institute conducts some of its research on sustainable grape and wine production at the estate. A smaller portion was sold on to André Lurton, now a neighboring estate named Château Couhins-Lurton.

Production

The vineyard area is divided between 7 hectares with white grape varieties of 85%

Sauvignon blanc is a green-skinned grape variety that originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French words ''sauvage'' ("wild") and ''blanc'' ("white") due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in ...

and 15%

Sémillon Sémillon is a golden-skinned grape used to make dry and sweet white wines, mostly in France and Australia. Its thin skin and susceptibility to botrytis make it dominate the sweet wine region Sauternes AOC and Barsac AOC. History The Sémill ...

and 15 hectares with red grape varieties of 50%

Merlot Merlot is a dark blue–colored wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of ''merle'', the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the ...

, 40%

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebanon' ...

, 9%

Cabernet Franc Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire's Chinon. In addition to being us ...

and 1%

Petit Verdot Petit Verdot is a variety of red wine grape, principally used in classic Bordeaux blends. It ripens much later than the other varieties in Bordeaux, often too late, so it fell out of favour in its home region. When it does ripen it adds tannin, c ...

. Of the ''Grand vin'' Château Couhins dry white there is annually produced 20,000 bottles, and of the red 30,000 bottles. Of the second wines Couhins la Gravette there is produced 30,000 bottles of red and 8,000 bottles of dry white, and 5,000 bottles of the red third wine La Dame de Couhins.chateau-couhins.f
Description technique

References

External links

Château Couhins official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Couhins, Chateau Bordeaux wine producers