CHÂTEAU PRIEURÉ-LICHINE
A Margaux Cru Classé synonymous with history, tradition and pretty nectars!
Château Prieuré-Lichine is a wine estate located in AOC Margaux, ranked 4th Grand Cru Classé in 1855. PrieuréLichine is not a young property and is one of the most historically rich in the region. Indeed, the origins of the Château go back to a donation from the priory-cure of Saint-Didier de Cantenac made by the lords of Blanquefort to the regular canons of Saint-Augustin established in the abbey of Vertheuil around the year 1000. During the period Anglo-Gascon
Guyenne (1154-1453), this Médoc abbey, major stop in Medoc of the Great Way of Saint Jacques de Compostela, owned the largest wine estates of the Medoc. In 1444, wines from his ”cru” of the Priory of Cantenac were at the top of the hierarchy of wines of their time.They were taxed by the king’s baker at the same rate as those of the Hermitage or Clos de Vougeot, as evidenced by the records of the customs of Hull.
In 1999 the Château Prieuré-Lichine was bought by the Ballande Family from Sacha Lichine (son of Alexis Lichine), the emblematic owner of the estate since 1951. Alexis Lichine was at the origin of the revival of the property. The child of a Russian immigrant who fled the revolution in his native country, he fell under the spell of the property to which he would devote his life and fortune.
Today Château Prieuré-Lichine covers 70 hectares in production but with a potential of 80 hectares. A few plots are also planted in HautMédoc and in white Bordeaux. Each year the property produces about 420,000 bottles. Let’s meet Etienne
Charrier, technical director of this beautiful Château in Margaux.
Why do you make wine? Why did you become a winemaker?
Etienne Charrier : Because it’s a state of mind, it’s a harmony. It is a communion with many different disciplines, both technical, philosophical and scientific. It’s a mix of all these materials that really fit my nature. I did not have a passion for wine when I was very young, but a little later, at the university. What I liked was the friendly side, the open-minded side. When you put a bottle of wine on the table it brings good humor and smiles to people. This work combines both my affinity for scientific subjects, my scientific curiosity and the human side of this wonderful nectar that is wine.
What is your working philosophy?
E.C.: I would say that my philosophy is above all to produce the best possible grapes and then be as respectful as possible of these berries. We must give ourselves every means to reach the full maturity of a grape, so that means that we must seek a perfect balance between sugar, acidity and phenolic maturity. Then once nature has given us that we will have to know how to get the best out by measuring extractions, blends but also by adapting each year the to the farms (time, container, type of wood ...).
If you had to define what wine represents for you in 3 or 4 adjectives, what would you say?
E.C.: The wines that seduce me, which I like, are wines that speak about where they were produced. So the wine has to have a really authentic side. It must translate the atmosphere and atmosphere of the place where they were made. I also particularly like it when the wine also reveals a little philosophy of the people who made it. In my opinion for the definition of wine authenticity is the key word.
What is the signature of Château Prieuré-Lichine wines?
E.C.: What will characterize the wines of the property is quite due to the history and construction of the vineyard. We have a plot that is relatively fragmented. We have vineyards in the 5 villages of the Margaux appellation. This is the uniqueness of Prieuré-Lichine and allows us to have this finesse, this nobility and elegance typically Margal. The tannins are very silky, very round and without ostentatious side even in their youth. Our wines are harmonious and have a good aging capacity. They are very focused on the fruit which allows them to be enjoyed as well in their youth as in their evolutions due to time.
What is your greatest emotion when it comes to wine tasting at Château Prieuré-Lichine?
E.C.: The most memorable memory I believe was the 2012 blends tasting. The 2012 vintage was the last vintage produced in the installations made at the time by Alexis Lichine but where the sense of wine and of all related issues made perfect sense. What I mean is that at the end of the 2012 vinification we had wines that were quite austere, quite closed and quite square in style. After 12 months of growth, we had a harmony and a fullness of the wines that was quite magical. They were really accomplished, offered the gourmandise that we had absolutely not perceived
at the end of vinification.
Please can you tell us a little bit about your white wine?
E.C.: Our white wine is a creation by Sacha Lichine who planted white grape varieties in 1991. The first vintage released was in 1993. At the time he wanted to have a full range of white, red, rosé. Today we stopped producing rosé but we continue this tradition of white. It comes from a typical Bordeaux blend that is Sémillon and Sauvignon. This production is rather anecdotal but we enjoy to produce this wine.
Do you have any special projects for the Château Prieuré-Lichine?
E.C.: We have a plan for grubbing up, replanting and restructuring the vineyard, which was launched at the time of the takeover by the Ballande family. Since 2014 we have had a boost. The goal is to achieve a proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon a little stronger in the final blend. Also, even if it is a project already realized we inaugurated in 2013 a new, more efficient vats, more adapted to today and which allows us to work in a more precise, fragmented way.
Finally, do you have an anecdote about the property?
E.C.: Alexis Lichine loved this place so much that he was buried on the property. He is on the plateau behind the château. This is something that has always been very important in the Lichinefamily.