2016 Château Figeac 1. Grand Cru Classé "A" Saint-Emilion

What many have known for a long time is now official! The family castle Château-Figeac belongs to the absolute top in St. Emillion and with the upgrade to 1. Grand Cru Classé A in 2022, proving it. Only two other châteaux in St. Emillion now have the gundrand classification, but no other châteaux stand out like Figeac. Where Cabernet Franc and especially Merlot dominate on the right bank where St. Emillion is located, Château Figeac Grand Vin is dominated by 2/3 Cabernet. To call Château Figeac Bordeaux's answer to Burgundy is not at all far-fetched.

While the Manoncourt family has owned Château Figeac for 130 years, it is Thierry Manoncourt who from 1947 until his death in 2010 defined Château Figeac and its recognizable style. Known as the 'Pharaoh of St. Emillion', Thierry Manoncourt stands as one of Bordeaux's great personalities and pioneering winemakers. Château Figeac's 54 hectares of vineyards, located directly opposite the famous Cheval Blancs, are broken only by biodiverse patches of untouched nature and characterized by gravel, mostly known from the left bank, and including the mythical blue clay, which many explain Le Pin's unique expression. Thierry Manoncourt has understood that Figeac's terroir is an exception to the appellation, and has just planted with the St. Emillion's unique distribution of equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. After Thierry Manoncourt's death, his widow Marie-France and her family have taken over the operation and continue to make wine in Thierry's spirit. Château Figeac is more alive, more dynamic, more zen than ever before.

Château Figeac's Grand Vin is made from hand-harvested and strictly sorted, sustainably grown grapes. The grapes are gently pressed and gravity fed into the fermentation vats. After fermentation, the wine ages in 100% new oak barrels for 15-18 months. The entire vinification takes place under the watchful eye of the legend Michel Rolland. While dear Michel is often criticized for being too obsessed with late harvest and lots of extraction, elegant, refined, rose-scented Château Figeac is the exception and proof of how skilled a consultant Michel really is. Château Figeau belongs in the absolute top of Bordeaux and should be in every Bordeaux lover's wine cellar. For many vintages.