02 Jun 2021

Château Pedesclaux is an estate we think is worth getting on board with early.  Like Lynch-Bages and Pontet-Canet, to which it is adjacent, this is a fifth growth Pauillac, in the doldrums until it was bought by property investor and rugby club owner Jacky Lorenzetti.  He now runs Pedesclaux with his daughter Manon and clearly has his sights set on equalling those other fifths. 

When we first visited here a few vintages back it was an amazing display of cutting-edge Bordeaux wine making technology.  The dark oblong winery looms over the vineyard and has the most amazing display of high tech stainless steel we have ever seen.  There is an enormous sense of focus and intent in the team. The vintages we have tasted tend toward being complex, serious, dark-fruited, muscular and full of crushed rock mineral character. 

Offered at £320 per dozen, Suckling scores the 2020 95-96 points.  We would not be at all surprised if wines from this estate were trading at closer to twice this price in ten years from now. 

Bordeaux En Primeur, Landing in spring 2023

Limited availability.  To order, e-mail us at sales@richardkihl.ltd.uk 

Producer Profile

Château Pedesclaux, Pauillac

Château Pedesclaux is a Cinquièmes Cru Classé in Pauillac.  Without the prominence of fellow 'fifths' such as Lynch-Bages and the adjacent Pontet-Canet, this is clearly an estate with the ambition to match those famous names and which is going places fast.  Property magnate and rugby club owner Jacky Lorenzetti has invested heavily here (as at Lilian Ladouys) since buying the estate.  Visiting here, you cannot help but be impressed by the intentionality displayed everywhere, from the gleaming, gravity-fed winery to the glass-clad château designed by architect Jean-Michel Willmotte.  

The 50 hectares of vines are on deep gravel, blended with clay and some limestone. The vines are 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. The second wine is Fleur Pedesclaux.

The excellent animation below illustrates how well Pedesclaux's gravity-fed vats operate.  Sheer genius and yet so simple!