Pessac-Léognan

🇫🇷 France

AOC Rare find

AOC 1987 - Northern Graves elite, all 16 Crus Classés de Graves, red AND white excellence

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Region profile

History

Created 1987 from northern Graves (formerly "Haut-Graves"). Graves reds classified 1953, whites added 1959. Haut-Brion is ONLY First Growth outside Médoc in 1855 Classification. Vines planted since 1365 at Smith Haut Lafitte site. Jean de Pontac began Haut-Brion estate 1525 - oldest continuously operating Bordeaux winery.

Climate
Günzian gravel over clay, sand, and limestone; 1,880 hectares across 8 communes; gravel up to 18m deep at Haut-Brion; gentle slopes to 45m elevation
Signature wines
Château Haut-Brion - First Growth since 1855, 50ha, gravel 18m deep, owned by Dillon family since 1935; Château Smith Haut Lafitte - Cathiard family since 1990 transformed it with bio-precision viticulture and on-site cooperage (rare honor shared with Lafite, Margaux)
What sets it apart
Only Bordeaux appellation equally celebrated for red AND white wines; contains ALL Graves Crus Classés; Haut-Brion is sole First Growth outside Médoc

Facts

  • All 16 châteaux from 1953/1959 Graves Classification located here
  • 22 classified wines total (some estates classified for both red AND white)
  • doubled from 813ha (1987) to 1,880ha today
  • 70 châteaux

Region profile from the Wine Memories wine-data corpus · verified January 2026