Chateau Rahoul
AOC Graves blanc, Graves rouge.
Member of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux.
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A member of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux, Château Rahoul boasts an exceptionally diverse range of terroirs. Its history dates back to the 17th century, when Knight Guillaume Rahoul constructed the attractive chartreuse, or country house, and gave it its name.
Dourthe has been entrusted with managing the estate since 2007 and remains determined to uphold its status among the finest of the Graves appellation.
Devenu viticole dès le XVIIIème siècle…le cru couvre environ 40 ha…confié en 2007 aux équipes de la maison Dourthe. Une valeur sûre.
Guide Hachette
Key facts
93/100
Decanter
100%
Mechanical ploughing
0
CMR / chemical fertilisers / insecticides / herbicides
Planting
21 Ha Merlot
9 Ha Cabernet Sauvignon
1 Ha Petit Verdot
3 Ha Semillon
1 Ha Sauvignon Blanc
Soil profile
Sandy gravel and clay-gravel.
Total surface area
31 Ha red wine
4 Ha white wine
A vineyard shaped by history
The vineyard spans almost 40 hectares. Additional parcels from the communes of Illats, Podensac and Saint-Selve have been added to the original ‘Tour du Château’ vines in Portets, creating a rich diversity of soils, where the varietal mix is adapted to the different soil types.
Château Rahoul’s sandy-gravel soils promote elegant fine wines with delicate tannins.
Merlot thrives on the sandy-gravel and clay-gravel soils of Portets and Illats.
Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc yield their best results on the premium quality plots located in Saint-Selve, while Semillon flourishes on the sandy-gravel soils of Portets and Podensac, where it reveals its true worth.
A rich diversity of terroirs along the Graves wine route.
Viticulture
Managing the vines is a round-the-clock occupation, requiring patience, a meticulous approach and exacting standards.
In spring, the vineyard takes on new life and the first buds appear, of which some will be sacrificed to allow improved circulation of air to the grapes and more uniform sunlight. This is also a critical time for vine health. To protect our local environment, we have adopted sustainable practices in the vineyard since 1995, and have been awarded both HVE 3 and Terra Vitis certification.
July and August are critical months that shape the quality of future vintages. To channel the energy of the vine without compromising vigour, the canopy is painstakingly managed across the estate, ensuring perfect fruit ripeness as a result.
Guyot Poussard.
Traditional ploughing, mechanical weeding. Manual budstripping, desuckering, leaf thinning and lateral shoot removal for Cabernet Sauvignon.
Mainly using organic and biological control agents. No CMR pesticides. Sustainable cover planting.
Grapes of inconsistent ripeness are removed from mid-veraison as required. Harvesting by individual parcel. Optical sorting.
Winemaking and ageing
The harvest marks the end of an entire year’s work.
The white grapes, which are predominantly Semillon, are harvested by hand in slatted crates to avoid any damage to the berries. They are then pressed under inert gas to retain the complex aromas and the freshness of the musts.
The former orangerie at Château Rahoul is renovated in 2012 to provide the white wines with optimum conditions for vinification in barrel. The wines are then aged for 8-9 months.
The red grapes are vinified traditionally in the winery, where temperature-controlled tanks of varying capacity allow individual batches to be vinified separately. The wines are transferred to barrel immediately after malolactic fermentation and aged for 12 months in oak barriques.
In the early 80s, the extraordinary quality of the wines warranted its passage into the supreme heights of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux.
Stainless-steel tanks
Vinification takes place in stainless-steel tanks of varying capacity, where individual parcels can be vinified separately, mirroring the precision approach carried out in the vineyard.
The team
Pierre Estorge, Estate Manager
Frédéric Bonnaffous, Chief Winemaker
Our history
2012
A new cellar for the whites
The Château’s former orangerie is completely renovated and reconfigured to provide the white wines with optimum conditions for vinification in barrel.
2007
Dourthe and Château Rahoul
Dourthe is entrusted with the management of the estate in 2007.
2004
A coat of arms
Engraved on an ancient plaque on the château’s chimney breast, the coat of arms, featuring the crowned emblem of France and Knight Guillaume Rahoul’s motto “Lilio Fidelis”, has adorned the estate’s wine labels since the 2004 vintage.
1986
Thiénot family
With its international flavour and having passed through English, Australian and Danish hands, the estate enters Alain Thiénot’s family in 1986.
1984
The ‘Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux’
In 1981, Château Rahoul attempts entry to the prestigious Union des Grands Crus. Len Evans writes in his memoires that “the admission board, « realising the improved quality of the red and white wines», was keen to monitor its continued progress… “. Their wish is finally granted in 1984, only after Len Evans has sold the château: « I was delighted, even if I was no longer part of the team who took the credit ».
1978
Little United Nations
An avid lover of Semillon, Len Evans, a brilliant writer and Australian wine icon, acquires Château Rahoul with the determination to create a premium Graves white wine. Backed by the cream of Australian winemaking, he applies rigorous and innovative practices which rapidly bear their fruits. He assembles an international team including up-and-coming Australian winemaker Brian Croser, which subsequently earns the estate the nickname ‘Little United Nations’. The quality of the wines soon wins the recognition of its peers.
1972
The David Robson era
A vine-growing estate since the 18th century, Château Rahoul would not be sold in bottle until the 1970s, when the estate is acquired by David Robson. An Englishman with a passion for Bordeaux wines, he sets about completely restructuring the chateau and its vineyard, sealing his commitment to creating premium quality wines at Rahoul.
1868
Camiran family
The Count of Camiran, who also owns Château Le Boscq in Saint-Estèphe, acquires the estate in 1862, which appears in the second edition of Feret’s prestigious Bordeaux Wine Guide in 1868, featuring among the top 10 wines in the commune of Portets to be accredited with ‘order of merit’.
1819
Pierre Balguerie
Vice-president of the district of Cadilac after the French revolution, Préfet of Gers, and Baron of the Empire, Pierre Balguerie moves to Rahoul in 1819, on the death of his father. Here he builds the impressive gateway, where his monogram can still be seen today. At the time, the vast estate extends as far as the Garonne river.
1734
Balguerie family
Before the French Revolution, the estate passes to Jean Balguerie, who hails from a family of highly influential negociants and shipowners on the Place de Bordeaux. He extends and renovates the château and develops the vineyard in order to sell the wines on La Place.
1646
Knight Guillaume Rahoul
The history of the château began in 1646, when Knight Guillaume Rahoul built this pretty chartreuse and gave it its name. In a fitting tribute, the label features the Knight’s coat of arms, which is still displayed today on the fireplace in the salon.
Gallery
