Château Marquis d'Alesme Becker is a

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 ...

in the

Margaux Margaux (; ) is a former commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Margaux-Cantenac.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 ...

of the

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 ...

region of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The wine produced here was classified as one of fourteen ''Troisièmes Crus'' (Third Growths) in the historic

Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 The Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 resulted from the Exposition Universelle (1855), 1855 Exposition Universelle de Paris, when Emperor Napoleon III of France, Napoleon III requested a classification system for France's best Bordea ...

.Karen MacNeil, ''The Wine Bible'', Workman Publishing, 2001, p. 885, The estate produces 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 Marquise d'Alesme.

History

Established by the Marquis d'Alesme in 1585, the estate was originally planted in 1616. The property was acquired in 1809 by the

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

businessman Jan Bekker Teerlink (1759–1832), commonly referred to as ‘Monsieur Becker’ (the misspelled first part of his double-barrelled family name), who attached his name to that of the estate, and for a period the wine was called simply "Becker" in Bordeaux. In the early 20th Century, the property was bought by Comte Jean-Jules Théophile Chaix-d'Est-Ange, who had also inherited neighbouring

Château Lascombes Château Lascombes is a winery in the Margaux Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée, appellation of the Bordeaux wine, Bordeaux region of France. The wine produced here was classified as one of fifteen ''Seconds Crus'' (Second Growths) in the origi ...

from his father, who intended to combine the two estates, but died in 1923 before carrying out the plan. The original Marquis d'Alesme

château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

became offices for Lascombes, with the original château of Desmirail taking its place. The estate saw a succession of owners, including English firm WH Chaplin & Co and the Zuger family, until it was sold in 2006 to petrochemical industry businessman Hubert Perrodo . Apparently with elaborate plans of combining several of his Margaux estates, no changes took place after Perrodo was killed in a skiing accident in late 2006. The estate is currently run by Nathalie Perrodo.

Production

The vineyard area consists of of vines, currently planted with 30%

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 ...

, 45%

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 ...

, 15%

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 10%

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, ...

, an unusual composition of grape varieties for Margaux or the

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 ...

. Approximately 8000 cases of the ''Grand vin'' is produced per year, and 1000 cases of the second wine, Marquise d'Alesme.

References

External links

Château Marquis d'Alesme official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marquis D'Alesme Becker, Chateau Bordeaux wine producers