Bordeaux Vineyards
Medoc
Vast northern section of the left-bank peninsula. Primarily planted in Cabernet Sauvingon and Merlot, intermixed with small plots of Cabernet Franc and early-ripening Petite Verdot flourishes throughout the region.
St. Estephe
Northernmost communal Médoc appellation containing microclimates and soil variations . Early viticulture techniques documented as far back as the late 13th century. Early trading of wines to India by the "maharaja of St. Estephe," Louis D'Estournel, cultivated international recognition for St. Estephe and Bordeaux wines. The soils are base sea-clay limestone, with numerous echinoderm fossils, organoleptic characteristics revealing different topographic and pedologic parameters.
Pauillac
Home communal appellation of 1st growth chateaux Lafite, Latour, and Mouton. Remarkable gravel deposits mixed with aeolean sands form a harmonious topography dominated by rolling hills. Deep coarse gravel deposits result in optimal draining conditions, resulting in deeply-complex wines that have the potential to age for 100+ years in historic vintages (i.e. 1961, 2000)
St. Julien
Transition communal appellation, linking the elegance of Margaux to the power of Pauillac. Lying in long undulations along the riverside, the soil is partially composed of small siliceous gravels. Labyrinths of water channels permit an efficient and natural evacuation of rain water. Along the Gironde riverside, calcareous subsoils absorb water efficiently, and are able to drain excess through the channels. Further inland, the soils are richer. The former is distinguishable for its fineness, the latter for its structure.
Margaux
The Marguax appellation stretches out over five communes and is the only appellation to contain all the range of wines from First Great Cru Classé to the Fifths. The soil contains Garonne gravel on a central plateau of about 4 miles in length and one and a quarter wide. Its east side has gentle, dry valleys and a succession of ridges. All the soil conditions needed for successful wine are present in Margaux, including a large amount of gravel and pebbles.
Graves - Pessac Leognan
The Graves appellation spreads over twelve thousand acres from the gates of Bordeaux to the north and upstream to the Garonne to the small town Langon and touches the pine forest in the west. The area prospers from the warm, humid, and mild Bordeaux climate, however, the vineyards on one side lie along the riverside of the Garonne where the vine stocks are exposed to morning mists. The soil composition in this region encompasses gravel terraces with a clay and ferruginous ground.
Pomerol
Pomeral lies within the Libournais wine region, situated on a plateau where successive terraces slope down to the Ilse and Dordogne valley. A compact plateau of clay spreads over the appellation's heart, along with deep course gravel and small gravel pebbles. Hybrids are not allowed for the vinification of Pomerol wines, limiting the grape varieties to Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec.
St. Emilion
St. Emilion lies within the Libournais wine region, spreading over thirteen thousand acres, whose soil composition can be divided into five separate sections; the "heart" wine area, "slopes" area, "gravels" area, "sandy glacis, and finally, the "plains." St. Emilion's winter months are relatively mild, the summer period warm without long hot periods to injure the grapes' maturity cycle by an early ripening, however, the vineyards are exposed to frequent winter and spring frosts due to it's proximity to the Atlantic Ocean.
Cotes de Castillon
The Côtes-de-Castillon wine area lies around the ancient city Castillon-la-Bataille on the right riverbank of the Dordogne. Its area spreads over six thousand acres planted with Merlot, Cabernet-Sauvignon, Cabernet-Franc and Malbec varietals. The soil of its northern is limestone plateau mixed with sea. At the foot of the hillsides lies clayey-sandy soils. The plains area of the region has sandy, sandy-gravelly or sandy-clayey soils.