Saint-Julien
Sandwiched between the more famous appellations of Pauillac and Margaux, Saint-Julien is sometimes unfairly overlooked because it does not have a first-growth château. Pauillac has three of the five Médoc first growths and Margaux has one. The 1855 classification of the Médoc châteaux which cast these judgments in stone has remained unchanged since it was first published, except for the promotion of Château Mouton-Rothschild to Premier Grand Cru Classé in 1973.
Saint-Julien makes up for its lack of first-growth châteaux by being home to 11 classed growths, which generate three-quarters of the appellation's output. Five of these are highly rated second growths: Châteaux Léoville Las Cases, Léoville Poyferré, Léoville Barton, Gruaud-Larose and Ducru-Beaucaillou. The first three were once a single estate, which would have been extremely large for its time.
Almost every acre of the Saint-Julien commune is covered with vines, except for a strip about 1,640ft (500m) wide on the silted banks of the Gironde estuary to the west. The châteaux which own them can be split into two neat groups: those around the village of Saint-Julien-Beychevelle and those around the village of Beychevelle. These two similarly named villages are only 1.5 miles (2km) apart, which illustrates the smallness of scale that operates in the Médoc. In fact, the vineyards in the north of Saint-Julien back directly onto the vineyards of Château Latour in Pauillac, yet the wines they produce are different in both status and style.
Created in 1936 – like so many Bordeaux wine regulations – the appellation laws for Saint-Julien state that its wines must be made from grapes grown in the commune of Saint-Julien Beychevelle, or very specific parts of the communes of Cussac and Saint-Laurent. The document lists the plots (parcelles) eligible for the title.
The grapes permitted for use here are Cabernet-Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Carmenère, Petit Verdot and Malbec. They must come from vineyards planted to a minimum density of 6,500 plants per hectare (2,631 per acre), with specified vine-management techniques.
Saint-Julien is bordered to the west by the Saint-Laurent commune, whose wines are eligible only for the wider Haut-Médoc appellation. An example of the effect of this can be found in Saint-Laurent's Château Belgrave. It lies just a few hundred metres from Château Lagrange, which can claim the valuable Saint-Julien name, yet Château Belgrave cannot.
As is the case with many other prestigious Bordeaux appellations, national and foreign investment is common in Saint-Julien. Châteaux here are owned by a combination of wealthy individuals and international companies.
-
Sale
£55.50Croix De Beaucaillou 2014, Saint-Julien
Château Ducru-BeaucaillouCroix De Beaucaillou2014 is an outstanding wine which exhibits a dense purple colour along with a sweet kiss of cassis, liquorice, incense and grap...
View full details£55.50Sale -
Sold out
Original price £35.90Current price £29.65Duluc De Branaire-Ducru 2012, Saint-Julien
Château Branaire-DucruDuluc De Branaire-Ducru 2012 has an appealing nose, aromatic with hints of pepper and blackberry fruit. Generous fruit, superb concentration, beaut...
View full detailsOriginal price £35.90Current price £29.65Sold out -
Sale
£96.00Château Branaire-Ducru 2009, Saint-Julien
Château Branaire-DucruChateau Branaire-Ducru 2009 is a dense purple wine that has the tell-tale notes of blueberries, flowers and pencil shavings, and its broad, aromati...
View full details£96.00Sale -
Sale
£36.75Duluc De Branaire-Ducru 2016, Saint-Julien
Château Branaire-DucruDuluc De Branaire-Ducru 2016 has an appealing floral nose, aromatic with hints of dark fruit. Generous and fine with superb concentration, beautifu...
View full details£36.75Sale -
Sale
£396.00Château Léoville Las Cases 2006, Saint-Julien Magnum
Château Léoville Las Cases"Not surprisingly, Chateau Leoville Las Cases has produced another classic, potentially long lived wine in 2006. Among the Saint-Juliens, it, Ducru...
View full details£396.00Sale