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Margaux

Facts & figures:

Vineyard area: 32 hectares | Production: 150,000 bottles

Top vintages: 1990, 1996, 2000, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Price: from €30 I Second wine: Réserve de Chateau Angludet

Château Angludet

F-33460 Cantenac | Tel. +33 (0)557 88 71 41

Château Angludet

Unclassified (Cru Bourgeois)

‘A wine for the patient; unbeatable value

for money, one of my absolute favourite

Margaux!'

Stylish classic

This discreet top estate, sometimes known as d'Angludet, stands alongside famous

Margaux estates such as Palmer, Brane-Cantenac and Giscours. The facade of the

chateau dates from the 12th century, making Angludet one of the oldest estates

on the wine peninsula. In the mid-18th century, four smallholdings (‘métairies')

in what is now Margaux were owned by members of the nobility: three belonged

to Pierre d'Aulède de Lestonnac, owner of La Mothe (later Château Margaux), and

the fourth was owned by Demons d'Angludet. The ‘plot plan' has remained virtu-

ally unchanged since 1758. The estate was divided up in 1791 and only regained

its former size in 1891; consequently, despite its long history and the quality of its

soils, Angludet was not part of the 1855 classification. It was hit particularly hard by

phylloxera, world wars and the depression: when the famed Sichel wine merchant

family purchased the estate in 1961, only around seven hectares of planted vines

remained. Since 1989 the estate has been run by Benjamin Sichel, who with his

sister and four brothers represents the sixth generation of the dynasty.

This wine clearly prioritises elegance and harmony

over body and power – which is not to say that

Angludet does not move with the times: its preci-

sion and polish have increased hugely since 2005.

Its previously rather di

ffi

cult transition from a newly