Château Pavie - Perse Family vineyards
The rebirth of Château Pavie, 1er Grand Cru Classé A of Saint-Émilion
The Perse Family Vineyards brings together five properties located on the right bank of Bordeaux, Château Bellevue Mondotte, Château Monbousquet, Château Pavie-Decesse, Château Pavie and Clos Lunelles. Even though Pavie, whose origins date back to the 4th century, was not the first property acquired, it is currently the flagship of the family vineyards. For a little anecdote until the end of the 19th century, the property was known as Domaine Pimpinelle. Over the past two centuries, three great families have marked the history of the property; the Bouffard family, the Valette family and today the Perse family. Château Pavie is a 37-hectare (91.5 acres) property majestically set on the Pavie slope, thus dominating the Dordogne valley. In 1955, it obtained recognition as a “Premier Grand Cru Classé” for the undeniable quality of its terroir during the first classification of Saint-Emilion. In 2012, after very heavy work in the vineyards and cellars launched by the Perse family, it was elevated to the rank of “1er Grand Cru Classé A” of Saint-Emilion. Château Monbousquet and Château PavieDecesse are also proud carriers of the Grand Crus Classés recognition. We met with the commercial director of the Perse Vineyards, Olivier Gailly and we invite you to discover this family of entrepreneurs and enthusiasts, who in just over 20 years, have made their estates essential labels on the Place de Bordeaux.
Could you explain us how the Perse family came into the world of wine?
Olivier Gailly: It was not a childhood dream. Mr. Perse grew up in the Paris region where he started working very early. With his wife, they got into entrepreneurship by running a fruit and vegetable store first, in Boulogne Billancourt, which turned out to be a good business. Already at the time what worked well was their guarantee of quality. They got bigger when they had the opportunity to buy a supermarket in 1983 from the Promodès group. Subsequently, they had a second, then a third and a fourth, then a hyper… Their career within the mass distribution industry had Mr and Mrs Perse discover the world of wine. Mr. Perse quickly became a wine buyer for the Promodès group, which allowed him to visit all the wine regions of France. He is an autodidact who gradually formed himself, out of passion he sought to learn, to understand wine, devouring all the books on wine for that.
In the early 1990s, a merchant showed him around Saint-Emilion, and he immediately fell in love with this small village steeped in history. It was during his third visit, in 1993, that a merchant showed him the Château Monbousquet, which was then for sale. He returned to Paris with a bottle from the estate to let his wife know what he had just bought: “This is what I just bought. Not only wine for Promodès but also the Château for us”. This acquisition was followed by Château PavieDecesse in 1997 and then Château Pavie in 1998 for which they sold all of their 5 supermarkets and hypermarket. As a little anecdote: at the beginning when they only owned Château Monbousquet, they opened their bedroom windows every morning… with a view of Pavie! It had become a dream for them to be able to take over this beautiful property, back then owned by the Valette family since 1943. The vineyard of Monbousquet was in good, healthy condition when it was purchased… whereas Château Pavie needed huge investments at the time of purchase. There was a titanic job to be done in particular in the vineyard which had more than 32,000 missing vines. Some plots also had to be pulled up to be replanted differently. When the Perse bought it, there was 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Today we are at 50% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. The grape variety has therefore changed a lot. The clones were also adapted according to the soils and the exposure of the plots. A new cellar, more modern, more in line with the high quality standard of the estate had also been created.
Thanks to all this, we have wines that evolve towards a little more freshness, a little more tension and more central structure on the wine. We are talking about the backbone given by Cabernet Sauvignon. The work of the last 15-20 years is bearing fruit little by little. Today Mr and Mrs Perse are present on a daily basis. They come to Château Pavie and walk in the vineyards. They know their plots by heart, and follow all the work in the vineyard and in the cellars with great dedication. During the harvest Mr Perse is involved in technical tastings, the cutting schedules and blends decisions… The couple has a real daily involvement for 28 years, since the first day they set foot in the vines of Monbousquet.
They also bought a property in Les Baux de Provence, and more precisely in Mouriès, in the Alpilles. However, they do not produce wine there but only olive oil (10 hectares of olive trees) called La Clusière.
Where does the name of Château Pavie come from?
O.G.: This is explained by the fact that it is located on the Pavie slope which was famous for its
fruit as early as the 4th century. For the record a small peach called the ‘peach pavie’ was planted on this hillside by the Romans, which gave the name to the hill and then to the château.
What is the signature of Château Pavie, Château Pavie-Decesse and Château Monbousquet wines?
O.G.: The first idea is to let our different terroirs speak for themselves. The three vineyards are less than 2km from each other, but they have their own terroir characteristics.
For the last 20 years, Château Monbousquet has been a wine that is quite generous and full in the mouth, which coat the mouth very well. When we think of this wine we think above all of balance and pleasure. We have a lot of substance as well as a nice silky texture. The latter is a signature of “Perse” wines. In terms of terroir, we are on more sandy soils, in particular to the south of the property. There is also the presence of fairly pronounced iron grime and then a gravelly part (where we planted Cabernets). There are also slightly poorer soils, but they are just as important in bringing tension. At the level of the blends of Monbousquet, we average each year 40% Cabernets (30% Franc and 10% Sauvignon), the rest being Merlot.
For Château Pavie-Decesse, we are usually blending 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. The property covers 3.5 hectares. The wines of Pavie-Decesse are truly marked by the terroir, 100% limestone. The vineyard is divided into two plots which are located in the continuity of Château Pavie. In this wine we will have a lot of tension. It is very much chiseled, very tight, very straight and with a certain salinity presence in the finish.
Let us come to the wine of Pavie. Château Pavie is above all depth and complexity, a reflection of its terroir. There are three types of terroir on the estate: the foothill (sandy clay), the Pavie slope (clays mixed with limestone and molasse). The latter is very conducive to Cabernet. Then we have the limestone plateau which represents 2/3 of our planted surface. We find the same characteristics as the Pavie-Decesse terroir but with older Merlots. These three terroirs bring a complexity that is found in the wine. It is a wine that is quite powerful due to its limestone terroir. It is also characterized by its lengthy finish and ageing potential. The Perse touch is working on textures, the approach in the mouth is always very silky. This is also true for our second wine, Arômes de Pavie.
Do Perse vineyards have any plans?
O.G.: Above all, the big project is to continue working on our vineyards, taking care of our vines and always seeking to go further in the search for precision.
In September 2020, we renamed our hotel and restaurant, the Hotel de Pavie and La Table de Pavie (which were formally called Hostellerie de Plaisance and La Table de Plaisance). To achieve the same high standards in our cuisine as we have for our wines, the kitchen has been entrusted to the famous 3-Michelin Star French Chef Yannick Alléno. We now have a project to extend the Hotel de Pavie, which is in the heart of the village of St Emilion and which will open next spring. Mr and Mrs Perse continue to invest and undertake, they want to move forward.
Do you have an anecdote for us on the property?
O.G.: There is, located at 90 meters high, below the limestone plateau, a natural spring that flows continuously and fills a lake that was once an old quarry. When you are in the vineyards just below the limestone plateau, you can see part of the lake, which then goes under the limestone slab. The water is very cold, which gives us permanent coolness under this limestone slab of Château Pavie. This explains why this terroir is so specific and why it keeps so much freshness. We do not know where this source originates.