Château La Mission Haut-Brion - a winery steeped in history with consistent quality

Château La Mission Haut-Brion is a winery located in the Bordeaux region and part of the Pessac-Léognan appellation. In the classification for the Graves region of 1953, it ranks among the "Crus Classés". The château is located in the commune of Talence and also cultivates vineyards in Pessac. Since the merger with the Château Laville Haut-Brion winery in 2010, La Mission has been producing the dry white wine Château La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc in addition to its two red wines. In 1983 the company Domaine Clarence Dillon became the new owner of the winery.

The Pessac-Léognan region

The Pessac-Léognan appellation covers almost 1,300 hectares of vineyards, of which 1,000 hectares are red grape varieties and white grape varieties are grown on the remaining areas. The Pessac-Léognan growing region only received its independent AOC status in 1987. It was previously part of the Graves appellation.

The word "Graves" derives from the French term for pebbles: le gravier. What is special about these stony soils is their property of storing heat from the sun and releasing it again at night. The constant supply of heat creates a soil climate that is extraordinarily beneficial for the vines. The Pessac-Léognan wine-growing region runs through Bordeaux to the town of Martillac in a strip of around ten kilometers along dense pine forests. Due to the proximity to the Garonne, the climate is humid and very mild and thus offers ideal conditions for high-yield winegrowing.

Château La Mission Haut-Brion - a reflection of the eventful history of France

Steeped in history, the château was built in 1533 after Jean de Pontac became the owner of the property. The château achieved fame and glory beyond France when the well-known merchant Arnaud de Lestonnac married Jean de Pontac's sister. The couple's heiress was Olive de Lestonnac, who donated the winery to the Catholic Church in 1664.

After the French Revolution, the American Chiapelle family bought Château La Mission Haut-Brion, which had already made a name for itself trading in wines from France, particularly red wines from the Bordeaux region. The defining symbol of their ownership is the famous gate that adorns the entrance to the winery.

In 1919, the American winemaker and wine merchant Frederic Woltner acquired the château. Many connoisseurs regard this date as the starting signal for a fundamental change in the management of the winery, since not only fundamental renovation work took place, but in 1927 the first white wine came onto the market.

The château remained in the possession of the Woltner family until it was bought by the company Domaine Clarence Dillon in 1983. This was considered very active both in the wine trade and as a winemaker in the Napa Valley and on Howell Mountain. With the change of ownership, the vineyards were replanted and extensive modernization work was carried out on the wine cellar and bottling plant in order to continue to guarantee the highest quality.

The Château La Mission Haut-Brion vineyard, which covers a total of almost 31 hectares, cultivates around 27 hectares with red wine vines and around three and a half hectares with grape varieties for white wine. The area is planted with 45.8 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 43.8 percent Merlot and 10.4 percent Cabernet Franc.

vinification

The fermentation of the legendary red wine takes place in large stainless steel tanks, each holding 180 hectoliters and subject to individual temperature control. The wine then matures in new French oak barrels for an average of 22 months. La Mission produces between 6,000 and 7,000 cases of wine annually. The white wine production, on the other hand, amounts to less than 1,000 cases per vintage.