Château La Tour Figeac 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 ...

estate in 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 ''Grand cru classé'' 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 ...

, and is currently owned by the Rettenmaier family. It is situated between

Château Cheval Blanc Château Cheval Blanc (French for "White Horse Castle"), is a wine producer in Saint-Émilion in the Bordeaux wine region of France. Its wine received the highest rank of Premier Grand Cru Classé (A) status in the Classification of Saint-Ém ...

and

Château Figeac Château-Figeac is a winery, wine estate in the Saint-Émilion AOC, Saint-Émilion AOC (wine), appellation of Bordeaux wine, Bordeaux. , it is one of two chateaux to carry the highest rank (Premier Grand Cru Classé A) in the official Classif ...

near the border to

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 ...

History

Until 1879, this property was a part of the Figeac estate, when a section was bought by a M. Corbière. Later half the land was sold and further divided into the estates Château La Tour du Pin Figeac (Moueix) and Château La Tour du Pin Figeac (Giraud-Bélivier). In 1973 the estate was sold by François Rapin to the Rettenmaier family, and it has been managed by Otto Maximilian Rettenmaier since 1994. Between 1994 and 1997 the wines were made by 2012

Food and Wine Magazine ''Food & Wine'' is an American monthly magazine published by Dotdash Meredith. It was founded in 1978 by Ariane and Michael Batterberry. It features recipes, cooking tips, travel information, restaurant reviews, chefs, wine pairings and seas ...

Winemaker of the Year Aaron Pott. The technical director is Christine Derenoncourt, with

Stéphane Derenoncourt Stéphane Derenoncourt is a French people, French oenologist, ''vigneron'' working as a consultant for numerous winery, estates in Bordeaux wine, Bordeaux and other wine producers worldwide. With his wife, Christine Derenoncourt, he runs Vignerons ...

engaged as a consultant

oenologist Oenology (also enology; ) is the science and study of wine and winemaking. Oenology is distinct from viticulture, which is the science of the growing, cultivation, and harvesting of grapes. The English word oenology derives from the Greek word ' ...

Production

A biodynamic estate, the

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 extend with a grape variety distribution of 60%

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 ...

and 40%

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 ...

. The annual production of the ''Grand vin'' is typically at 3,300 cases, with the production of the second wine, L'Esquisse de La Tour Figeac at 1,250 cases. For the 2000 vintage, the second wine was replaced by a 100% Merlot named Cuvée M00.

References

External links

La Tour Figeac official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tour Figeac, Chateau La Bordeaux wine producers