Château-Figeac is a wine estate in the

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 ...

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 ...

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

. , it is one of two chateaux to carry the highest rank (Premier Grand Cru Classé A) in the official

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 ...

(2022 classification, valid until 2031 harvest year). It is among the largest estates in Saint-Émilion,Kissack, Chris, thewinedoctor.co
Chateau Figeac
accessed 2010-09-04 comprising in one block, of which are

vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

s. Due to its soil, which is dominated by gravel, it is planted in grape varieties

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 ...

(35%),

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 ...

(35%), and

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 ...

(30%). Most other Saint-Émilion wines are dominated by Merlot, and Figeac therefore bears a certain semblance to the wines of

Médoc The Médoc (; ) is a region of France, well known as a wine growing region, located in the '' département'' of Gironde, on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, northwest of Bordeaux. Its name comes from ''( Pagus) Medullicus'', or "country ...

and

Graves A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grave ...

despite being situated on Bordeaux's right bank. The wine, which is one of the most famous of Saint-Émilion, is aged in 100% new oak barrels. From 1945 to 2011, the estate produced a

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 ...

named La Grange Neuve de Figeac. From the 2012 vintage, the second wine of Figeac was rebranded as Petit-Figeac.

Jancis Robinson Jancis Mary Robinson OBE, ComMA, MW (born 22 April 1950) is a British wine critic, journalist and wine writer. She currently writes a weekly column for the ''Financial Times'', and writes for her website JancisRobinson.com, updated daily. She ...

Sixty vintages under his belt
, March 31, 2007

History

Château-Figeac originates from an ancient estate that traces its roots back to the 2nd century, when a Gallo-Roman villa was built on the estate and named after a Figeacus. In the late 18th century, the property was close to in size, but was sold and subdivided several times in the 19th century until 1892, when Henri de Chevremont bought it.
, accessed 2010-09-04 Henriette, the daughter of de Chevremont, married André Villepigue and became the owner of Figeac. The estate was managed by Alfred Maquin, as the Villepigues lived in Paris. In 1905, their son Robert Villepigue took over the running of the estate. After Henriette's death in 1942, it was unclear if Robert Villepigue or his sister Adda Elizabeth (who had married Antoine Manoncourt) would inherit the estate, but in 1946 it passed to Adda Elizabeth Manoncourt. In January 1947, Thierry Manoncourt (son of Antoine and Adda Elizabeth Manoncourt), an agronomical engineer trained in Paris, took over the running of Château-Figeac, and it was under his leadership that the estate rose to the front ranks of Saint-Émilion estates. He was actively involved with the estate until his death in 2010, alongside his son-in-law Comte Eric d'Aramon, who was the Director from 1988 until 2013. Since the passing of Thierry Manoncourt, his widow, Marie-France Manoncourt, the Honorary President of Château-Figeac, along with her family, has reenergized the estate with the appointment of Frédéric Faye (previously the technical director) as Managing Director. This new team notably oversaw the construction of new cellars. Constructed over 3 years, between 2018 and 2021, Château-Figeac's new cellars comprise 5,000 m2 of surface area over three levels, extending 12 meters underground.

''Terroir''

Château-Figeac is situated in the north-west corner of the Saint-Emilion

, close to the

Pomerol Pomerol (; ) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine near Bordeaux in southwestern France. Wine With only , Pomerol is the smallest wine producing area in the Bordeaux region. It is more a community where the vineyards ...

border. Its ''

terroir (; ; from ''terre'', ) is a French language, French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, th ...

'' is characterized by three Günzian gravel knolls of quartz and flint over a subsoil of iron-rich blue clay. This stands in distinct difference to the limestone-clay ''terroir'' on the plateau in the center of the appellation, where most Premiers Grands Crus Classés are located. The gravel soils allow for the planting of Cabernets, which can fully ripen due to the characteristics of this soil type: good drainage and reflected heat. Following the 1956 frost, Thierry Manoncourt replanted the vineyard to its current proportions : 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Cabernet Franc, and 30% Merlot.

Unrelated wines

In 1879 the Château Figeac estate was subdivided in resulting in the formation of the now unrelated estate

Château La Tour Figeac Château La Tour Figeac is a Bordeaux wine estate in the Appellation d'origine contrôlée, appellation Saint-Émilion AOC, Saint-Émilion, ranked ''Grand cru classé'' in the Classification of Saint-Émilion wine, and is currently owned by the Ret ...

. This adjacent property carries the lower rank of 'Grand Cru Classé'. Later Château La Tour Figeac itself was subdivided in two stages resulting in the formation of the equally unrelated Château La Tour du Pin Figeac (Giraud-Bélivier) and Château La Tour du Pin Figeac (Moueix), the latter of which no longer exists having been absorbed into Château Cheval Blanc. Château la Tour du Pin Figeac (Giraud-Bélivier) is currently unclassified having lost its 'Grand Cru Classé' status in 2012. Several of the other St-Émilion estates with Figeac as part their names result from the 19th century subdivision of the old Figeac estate.

References

External links

Château Figeac official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Figeac, Chateau Bordeaux wine producers Châteaux in Gironde Saint-Émilion wine