Château Charmail is located on the banks of the Gironde in Saint-Seurin-de-Cadourne in the Médoc on the left bank of the Bordeaux region. It makes red wine under the Haut-Médoc AOC. The name of the estate comes from its 16th century origins, when the Trevey de Charmail family settled in the Medoc. The property’s reputation really began to be known from the beginning of the 18th century. Since then vines have always been cultivated here. The château building dates from the 19th-century. 

Owner: Bernard d’Halluin.

History: Acquired in 1980 by Monsieur Laly, originally from Burgundy. In 1980 Roger Sèze of Château Mayne Vieil in Fronsac bought a share of the property. In 1981 Roger Seze bought the rest of the property from M Laly. In 1982 Olivier Sèze (whose brother Roger owned Château Mayne-Vieil in the Fronsac AOC on Bordeaux’s right bank) took over operations. In 2008 Bernard d’Halluin who is from Lille in northern France bought the estate. He enlarged the vineyard: 6 hectares (15 acres) were bought back in 2010 returning the vineyard to its original size. New buildings were also brought into use.

Vineyards: 20ha in a single block adjoining Château Sociando-Mallet on rolling gravel slopes running to the edge of the Gironde. 50% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc.

Red wines

Haut-Médoc AOC, Château Charmail: In 1990 this became the first estate in the modern era on the left bank to cold macerate its red grapes before the alcoholic fermentation. Olivier Sèze chilled the hand picked bunches to 5ºC with dry ice for up to two weeks. This method chills the grapes very rapidly, preserving the aroma by splitting the grape skin (electric cooling is too gradual). During maceration Sèze performs a carbon dioxide brassage each day. This is anaerobic, and extracts aroma, tannin, colour, strong aromas and is stable (as not hot). The fruit is then warmed, yeasted and fermented in stainless steel. Fermentation is quick at just 4 days, followed by another maceration with some more pumping over, but not excessively so. Sèze cold macerates to protect the aroma compounds lodged just underneath the grape skins. In addition chilling endows the wine with stable colour, for instead of the amber hue left after hot post-fermentative macerations, a blue tint is visible in Sèze’s cold soaked red. Charmail has an exuberant aroma, no astringency on the palate, and even though the tannins have none of the typical Médoc cut, it is inaccurate to call them sweet; they are in effect neutralised by the chilling, so the fruit takes over, like a sorbet when it thaws. Sèze remarks that his wine has more tannin than those of his neighbours but it tastes less tannic in comparison. 

Contact

Château Charmail

F-33180 Saint-Seurin-de-Cadourne

Tel+33 (0)5.56.59.70.63