Château Beau-Séjour Bécot, formerly Château Beauséjour-Dr-Fagouet, is a

Bordeaux wine Bordeaux wine (; ) 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 broad estuary called the Gironde; the Gi ...

from the

appellation An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication used to identify where the ingredients of a food or beverage originated, most often used for the origin of wine grapes. Restrictions other than geographical boundaries, s ...

Saint-Émilion Saint-Émilion (; Gascon dialect, Gascon: ''Sent Milion'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in Southwestern France. In the heart of the country of Libournais (the area around Libourne), in a regio ...

, ranked ''Premier grand cru classé B'' in the

Classification of Saint-Émilion wine In 1955, the Saint-Émilion AOC, wines of Saint-Émilion in the wine-growing region of Bordeaux wine, Bordeaux were classified. Unlike the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 covering wines from the Médoc and Graves (wine region), Grave ...

. The

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

is located in the Right Bank of France's

Bordeaux wine region The wine regions of Bordeaux in France are a large number of wine growing areas, differing widely in size and sometimes overlapping, which lie within the overarching wine region of Bordeaux, centred on the city of Bordeaux and covering the whole ...

in the commune of

, in the department

Gironde Gironde ( , US usually , ; , ) is the largest department in the southwestern French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,623,749.

. The estate also produces the

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 ...

Tournelle de Beau-Séjour Bécot, as well as the ''" Vin de garage"'', La Gomerie.

History

Once a vineyard cultivated by the monks of the Church of St-Martin during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, in the 17th century it was acquired by the Gerès family, the land then named Peycoucou. By marriage the estate came to the de Carle family, ''

seigneurs A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...

'' of

Figeac Figeac (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the southwestern French Departments of France, department of Lot (department), Lot. Figeac is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the department. Geography Figeac is on the via Podiensis ...

, and in 1787 General Jacques de Carle renamed the property to Beauséjour. When the historic estate in its entirety came to Pierre-Paulin Ducarpe, it was divided in 1869 between his two children. The daughter wed Duffau-Lagarosse, received what became Château Beauséjour-Duffau-Lagarrosse (present day Château Beauséjour) and his son inherited the half which was sold in 1924 to Dr. Fagouet, altering the name to Château Beauséjour-Dr-Fagouet. The estate received its current name after it was acquired in 1969 by Michel Bécot who began extensive efforts to modernise. Michel Bécot retired in 1985, and the estate is to date run by the sons Gérard and Dominique Bécot.

Demotion

The INAO committee in charge revising the

in 1985 demoted Château Beau-Séjour Bécot from ''Premier Grand Cru Classé'' to ''Grand Cru Classé'', as Beau-Séjour Bécot had in 1979 incorporated two other vineyards into its estate, La Carte, owned by the Bécot family since 1929, and Trois Moulins. The vineyard area was increased by 85%, making only

Château Pavie Château Pavie is a winery in Saint-Émilion in the Bordeaux region of France. It lies on the plateau to the southeast of St. Emilion village. In 2012 it was classified in the first rank of the Classification of Saint-Émilion wine, as a Premie ...

the larger estate in the area. The demotion was followed by unprecedented controversy. While no formal application to incorporate the amalgamated vineyards had been made, Beau-Séjour Bécot maintained there had been no loss in quality as demonstrated in formal wine tastings as stipulated by the Saint-Émilion AOC rules. The estate was promoted back to its previous classification at the following revision in 1996.

Production

The vineyard area extends 16.5 hectares with the grape varieties of 70%

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 , the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the color ...

, 24%

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 (wine), Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire (wine), Loire's C ...

and 6%

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 Lebano ...

. Of the ''Grand vin'', Château Beau-Séjour Bécot and the second wine, Tournelle de Beau-Séjour Bécot, there is a total annual production of 5,000 cases.

La Gomerie

The Bécot family acquired the Gomerie vineyard in 1995, an adjacent plot of 2.5 hectares, from which a wine is produced in the manner of "Garage wine". From a small vineyard of extremely low yields, the wine performs according to ''"Garagiste"'' norms, with new wood predominance, a small production, high ratings from Robert Parker and high prices.belgiumwinewatchers.co
La Gomerie
The wine consists of 100% Merlot, and production is limited to 1,000 cases per year. From this vineyard there is also produced a second wine, Mademoiselle La Gomerie.

References

External links

Château Beau-Séjour Bécot official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beau-Sejour Becot, Chateau Bordeaux wine producers Saint-Émilion wine