Château Poitevin
A relatively young Château by Bordeaux standards, having only been established in the 1950s, Château Poitevin has always been family run. Since 1991 it has been under the charge of Guillaume Poitevin, who took over when he was just 18 years old, and under whom it flourished. Doomed though the system would prove to be, Château Poitevin was one of only five Châteaux that were selected for the 2003 Cru Bourgeois re-classification. The vineyard now consists of 41 hectares of vines planted on gravel banks at the northern tip of the Médoc which is slightly cooler and therefore later ripening than other more southerly Bordeaux regions. The Château is like so many of the vineyards in Bordeaux now and is making efforts to be more environmentally friendly, works in 'lutte raisonnée, certified by Terra Vitis. On top of this, Guillaume Poitevin’s desire to avoid under-ripe, tannic grapes requires much hand harvesting and careful attention.
From 'Jane Anson’s top 10 ‘affordable’ Bordeaux wines'
Up in northern Medoc in Jau-Dignac-et-Loirac, this property is worth discovering in both red (their main production) and (harder to find but brilliant) white wine.
It’s easily one of the most reliable, rarely-disappoints Cru Bourgeois that you can find.
Owners Guillaume and Natacha Poitevin work with oenologist Antoine Medeville to draw the best out of their gravelly terroir, on one of the most northerly plateaus in the winemaking Médoc.
The white is 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 10% Semillon and has that gunsmoke, flinty edge that makes your heart race and is not always easy to find in Bordeaux.
The red is a blend of just a little more Merlot than Cabernet Sauvignon, but still delivers tons of cassis and cedar typicity without having to pay serious prices.
Jane Anson, Decanter
(Dec 2017)