Château La Cardonne

For more than three centuries, Château La Cardonne has proudly sat on the highest plateau of the Médoc. From our front steps, we enjoy a panoramic view of the distant horizon, from the Landes forest to the west, to the limestone cliffs on the right side of the Gironde river.

Our wines bear fruit of a unique terroir that generously offers both authenticity and complexity. A true respect for the vines and the soil, coupled with the alliance of tradition and modernity in how we work, and our constant search for optimising what mother nature delivers, allow us to consistently produce the most enjoyable wine that is true to it’s origins.

We’re fortunate to have a team of women and men with years of experience. They are dedicated and meticulous in their work, and although primarily focused on the present, they are always projecting well into future. It’s an important aspect of our work, when the wines we are producing today will improve with age, and may reach their pinnacle in 10-20 years time.

History in timeline

1769 & 1785 Château La Cardonne and the vineyard are visible on Cassini’s first general map of France and also on the map Pierre de Belleyme, King Louis XV’s cartographer.

1850 Château La Cardonne appears in the first edition of ‘‘Féret’’ (BORDEAUX et Ses Vins Ch. Cocks & Éd. Féret)

1932 The first Cru Bourgeois classification for Médoc wines not included in the 1855 Classification of Crus Classés was created by the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce and Chamber of Agriculture in 1932, selecting 444 estates, Château La Cardonne included.

1973 Château La Cardonne is acquired by Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite), becoming one of the most recognised cru bourgeois wines around the world. During the next 20 years the vineyard underwent intensive restructuring, drainage and replanting, predominantly focused on delivering wines with a true expression of this unique terroir.

1990 La Cardonne wine lover, Guy Charloux makes an offer to buy the vineyard, and then embarks in thoroughly modernising the winemaking facilities. In addition, a spectacular underground cellar, locally known as the ‘Cathedral’ is built, 10 metres below the vines.

2016 Château La Cardonne enters a new era, with ever greater ambitions: the cellars benefit from the latest advanced equipment to allow even greater precision in vinification. A new tasting room with panoramic views across the vineyard adds to the perfect wine lovers experience.

Our vineyard currently grows three grape varieties, and overall, we have 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot growing today.

The majority of vines are between thirty and forty years old, originally planted by previous owners, planted by Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite).

During the past twenty years we’ve really worked hard to minimize environmental impact ensure a safe, healthy workplace through the use of environmentally and economically sound practices. Initially certified ‘Agriculture Raisonnée’ we are currently following the yearly ‘Terra Vitis’ certification model (https://terravitis.com/presentation/).

Day by day our primarily goal in the vineyard is preserve our terroir and biodiversity for the future generations that will follow in our footsteps.

Since time immemorial, our vineyard Château La Cardonne has dominated the north of the Medoc peninsula. Sitting on the highest plateau, the horizon spans more than twenty kilometers to the East and to the North. Our 45 hectares of vines slope gently, exposed to both the west winds from the Atlantic Ocean, and the influence of the Gironde river.

Our vines are planted on a mosaic of different soli types: On the plateau, gravel soils are dominant with different thickness, layered on different depths of clay. As we travel down the slope, we reach the parcels comprised of clay-limestone soils, layered on blue marl with limestone outcrops. There is such diversity in each parcel, each creating their own variety of wine. That’s we vinify each parcel separately, giving rise to complex and elegant wines.

Producing exceptional grapes would not make sense if it was not then vinified with ultimate care and attention. At Château La Cardonne, we are constantly investing in the most innovative equipment as we seek to deliver added pleasure to those drinking our wines. Add to that the patient work of aging in oak barrels, which can last between 12 and 16 months as we seek to refine the structure, aromas and complexity to each vintage. After the bottling, our wines mature for many years, ten meters under the vineyard in a cellar called “the Cathedral”. The bottles of Château La Cardonne are released at full maturity, so that winelovers around the world can enjoy each bottle as we dreamed, they might.

Since joining the vineyard in 2000, Magali Guyon (former winemaker at Château Lynch-Bages) has passionately delivered some of the most memorable vintages in living memory.

Marrying extreme precision and a very personal vision, and with the most technologically advanced tools at her disposal, she ensures the purest expression of our terroir. Her constant search for finesse and elegance delivers harmonious and perfectly balanced wines that continue to stand the test of time.

Our wines bear fruit of a unique terroir that generously offers both authenticity and complexity. A true respect for the vines and the soil, coupled with the alliance of tradition and modernity in how we work, and our constant search for optimising what mother nature delivers, allow us to consistently produce the most enjoyable wine that is true to its origins.

We’re fortunate to have a team of women and men with years of experience. They are dedicated and meticulous in their work, and although primarily focused on the present, they are always projecting well into future. It’s an important aspect of our work, when the wines we are producing today will improve with age, and may reach their pinnacle in 10-20 years time.