Bordeaux-Haut-Benauge AOC is a white wine appellation on the right bank of the Bordeaux region. It covers the nine communes listed below, in the south-central part of the Entre-Deux-Mers region. Producers in this zone have four possible choices of AOC for their white wines: Bordeaux Blanc AOC, Entre-Deux-Mers AOC, Entre-Deux-Mers-Haut-Benauge AOC and this one, Bordeaux-Haut-Benauge AOC.

The name: The name derives from Viscount Benauge whose (now ruined) 11th-century castle is located in Arbis, one of the nine communes (see below) entitled to this AOC.

Terroir: Bordeaux-Haut-Benauge is the only region within Entre-Deux-Mers whose boundary touches neither the Garonne nor the Dordogne rivers. It is bounded to the east by Côtes-de-Bordeaux-St-Macaire and to the west by Côtes de Bordeaux-Cadillac. 

Communes (9): Arbis. | Cantois. | Escoussans. | Gornac. | Ladaux. | Mourens. | St-Pierre-de-Bat. | Soulignac. | Targon.

Soil: Aquitaine falaise from the Tertiary (rich in fossilised gornac oysters, calcareous, boulbènes) forced upwards and out of the sea by when the Pyrenees were moving around after the Quaternary to form an elevated ridge (118m) and valleys (85m).

Organics: Bordeaux-Haut-Benauge is one of Bordeaux’s key regions for organic winegrowing (see the wineries below).

Wines: Bordeaux-Haut-Benauge AOC is made from Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle. The grapes must be picked at higher ripeness levels compared to Entre-Deux-Mers-Haut-Benauge AOC. The wines can be dry (‘sec’), medium-sweet (‘moelleux’) or sweet (‘liquoreux’). Red wines are bottled as Bordeaux Rouge AOC or Bordeaux Supérieur AOC.

Wineries

Certified organic: Château Morlan-Tuilière. | Patrick Boudon.