Château Beychevelle, A prestigious Cru Classé whose character has been forged by three centuries of history. Nowhere does the word Château in its noblest sense ring as true as it does at Beychevelle.
Château Beychevelle, the “Versailles of the Médoc”, could only be expected to produce excellent wine. This outstanding 90-hectare vineyard, planted on deep, Garonne-gravel soil, has a wine growing tradition dating from the Middle Ages. More modern selection, wine making, and ageing techniques also contribute towards the finished wine’s perfection. Château Beychevelle is a Saint-Julien Great Growth, combining elegance with character and finesse with balance. Its lovely, ruby-red colour, fine structure, and subtle bouquet have earned this wine a high reputation all over the world. Château Beychevelle has been granted the double accreditation of “Terra Vitis” and “Sustainable Viticulture”.
The elegance of its classical architecture makes it a jewel in the crown of the Médoc, coveted since its creation by the powerful families who have successively marked the economic, political and cultural life of Bordeaux and the region.
Built in the 17th century, reconstructed by the Marquis de Brassier in 1757 and extended by the Heine family at the end of the 19th century, Château Beychevelle has recently been restored to its original splendour. Classical in its lines, the imposing façade, topped with a majestic triangular pediment and with wings on each side, is embellished with volutes and vases that give it an exuberantly baroque appearance.
Château Beychevelle is one of the most lovely and beautiful places to visit in Medoc.
There’s an extremely well kept garden in the front of chateau, but when you go into back-yard of Beychevelle. One fantastic sight down to the Gironde, especially when blue skies and sunny weather.
Armand’s son, Aymar Achille-Fould, took over in 1970. French Postmaster General and member of Parliament, he moved the phone book printing facility from the Paris area to Saint-Laurent-Médoc, thus creating 300 jobs. Following Professor Peynaud’s advice, he decided to create a second wine in 1974 : Amiral de Beychevelle.The huge cost of running the estate prompted him to look for a business partner to invest in Beychevelle. In 1984, the GMF group took a minority shareholding in the château and bought 89 % of the estate when Aymar Achille-Fould died in 1986. The remaining 11 % belong to the pension fund of the SOCIETE GENERALE bank In 1988, the GMF group joined forces with the Japanese SUNTORY company to create GRANDS MILLESIMES DE FRANCE. Today GRANDS MILLESIMES DE FRANCE is owned by the CASTEL and SUNTORY Groups.
Beychevelle offers a unique setting for the organisation of prestigious events. A cold and wet spring in Bordeaux has left producers in the Médoc certain that the 2013 harvest could take place as late as October. Philippe Blanc, director of Château Beychevelle in Saint-Julien said: “It might be a disaster or not, but with such cold and humid weather, merlot will be difficult.” This means yields of merlot could be low this year, which could have an impact on final blends.
Meanwhile, Didier Cuvelier, co-owner of Château Leoville Poyferre, is similarly optimistic: It’s like 1983 – in the end it was very nice with an Indian summer. Last year we also harvested very late. We began on October 8th and [the start of this season] is almost the same as this vintage. During harvest, usually the visits are closed or restricted limited numbers for safety reasons.
To enter beychevelle chai you must really take precaution while going down by stares, specially if you are visiting harvest day. The moment you are on the basement you will naturally sense the wet stone. It’s pretty dark here at the cellar. My first harvest at Beychevelle spent extremely enlightening, special thanks to Mme Susan Glize, who took so much effort for taking us around and getting introduced with beychevelle history during one of those Harvest days.
