Vieux Château Certan is one of Pomerol’s oldest known estates. Its creation dates back to the early 16th century when the Demay family from Scotland settled there. In 1924, the estate was purchased by Georges Thienpont, a wine merchant from the Flemish Ardennes. This was the starting point for the settlement of the family in Bordeaux. Covering 14 hectares in a single stretch, the Vieux Château Certan vineyards are split into 23 plots that are managed separately according to their soil types, grape varieties and vine age. The vines are an average of 50 years old. These old vines, combined with the Pomerol plateau’s microclimate, allow each grape variety to reach optimum ripeness.

Vieux Château Certan is the result of a very particular ecosystem where the soil, plant and climate work in perfect harmony to produce an exceptional wine.
Alexandre Thienpont

• AOC : Pomerol
• Surface : 14 hectares
• Terroir : Mixture of gravel, clay and sand containing a high proportion of crasse de fer (iron oxide)
• Grappe varieties : 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.
• Maturation : 18 months in barrels.

The property was acquired by George Thienpont in 1946 and he subequently replanted it with vines towards the end of the 1970’s. Since 1983 his son, Nicolas, has been responsible for the winemaking. Château Puygueraud has since become the benchmark wine for the Côtes de Francs and a reference for the renewal of this still little-known appellation. 1983 was the first vintage. Since 2013, Château Puygueraud produce a white wine, strongly characterised by its pure minerality.

• AOC : Francs – Côtes de Bordeaux
• Surface : 35 hectares for the red, 5 hectares for the white
• Terroir : Clay-limestone
• Grape varieties : Red: 70% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc, 5% Malbec | White: 55% Sauvignon blanc, 45 % Sauvignon gris
• Maturation : Red : 18-20 months in barrels | White: 6 months in stainless steel vats

This exceptional wine is a tribute to George Thienpont who had a particular affection for Malbec (called Pressac in the Bordeaux region) and Cabernet Franc. It is composed since 2000 of a selection of the vats of Château Puygueraud, but reversing the usual blend of the latter. The 2016 vintage marks the 70th anniversary of the acquisition of Château Puygueraud. To honor the memory of George, the label of this exceptional cuvée has been illustrated by Clémence Thienpont from a picture.

• AOC: Francs-Côtes de Bordeaux
• Terroir: limestone-clay, with asteriated limestone rock subsoil and clays
• Blend: 85% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc et 1% Cabernet Sauvignon
• Maturation: 12 to 16 months in barrel

La Gravette de Certan is the second wine of Vieux Château Certan, one of the most prestigious estates in Pomerol. The 14 hectares vineyard is located on the plateau of Pomerol and is average 35 years old. The soil is a mixture of gravel, clay and sand on an ancient plateau which contains a high content of “crasse de fer” (iron oxide).
Vinification and maturation process of La Gravette de Certan are the same as for producing the “Grand Vin” of Vieux Chateau certan.

• AOC: Pomerol
• Surface: 14 hectares
• Terroir: Mixture of gravel, clay and sand
• Grape varieties: 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon
• Maturation: 16 to 18 months in oak barrels

Located at the heart of the Pomerol plateau, the Le Pin estate has belonged to Jacques Thienpont since 1979. The vineyard is now made up of seven plots covering a total of just two hectares. The estate is planted with 100% Merlot in gravelly clay and sandy gravel soils with traces of iron. Le Pin is a wine made in very limited quantities. It is the result of an ambitious winemaking process in small stainless steel vats, followed by maturation in new barrels for 18 months.

• AOC: Pomerol
• Surface: 2 hectares
• Terroir: Mixture of gravel, clay and sand containing a high proportion of crasse de fer (iron oxide)
• Cépages: 100% Merlot
• Élevage: 18 months in new barrels

Château Pavie Macquin owes its name to the grand-father of the current owners Albert Macquin (1852-1911), who used plant grafting as a way to save the Saint-Emilion vineyard, destroyed by phylloxera. Since 1994, Nicolas Thienpont is managing this family property of 15 hectares which was promoted « Premier Grand Cru Classé » in September 2006.
The vineyard of Pavie Macquin is situated on the summit of the Saint-Emilion plateau. Thanks to its commanding position, its height ranges from 100 meters above sea level next to the hill, to 75 meters on the edge of the plateau. The soils are all limestone-clay and express different aspects of the terroir through the vine, depending on the strength of the clay, and above all on their proximity to the asteriated limestone layer at a depth of between 20cm and 150cm. Pavie Macquin is the combination of power and minerality.

• AOC: Saint-Emilion
• Surface: 14 hectares
• Terroir: limestone-clay plateau over asteriated limestone
• Blend: 85% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc et 1% Cabernet Sauvignon
• Maturation: 16 to 20 months in barrel

In the same family for over a century, Château Larcis Ducasse benefits from a terroir and an exceptional location on the Grande Côte of Saint-Emilion. The 11-hectare vineyard in one piece is a garden sheltered from the winds where the plots are stepped on the limestone slope.
Nicolas Thienpont has managed the property since 2002 with his right-hand man, David Suire, oenologist. Together, they ranked Château Larcis Ducasse as “Premier Grand Cru Classé” in 2012. Larcis Ducasse can count on the involvement of a whole team of winegrowers in love with nature and attached to the land with a passion for detail at every step of the vine and wine.
Larcis Ducasse was one of the first properties in the region to have a gravity cellar, around 1898. The maturation is discreet, calm and soothing. For the most airy batches, in 500L barrels with gentle toasting and under glass, the fruit is preserved in all its dazzling intensity.

• AOC: Saint-Emilion
• Surface: 11,3 hectares
• Terroir: South facing terraces (slope up to 25%). Combinaison of loamy clay soils on asteriated limestone and limestone-clay colluvial soils on hillside
• Blend: 91% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc
• Maturation: 16 to 18 months in barrel

Jacques Thienpont recently acquired six hectares of vines in Saint-Emilion, near the prestigious vineyards of Troplong Mondot and Château Valandraud, owned by Jean-Luc Thunevin. This is a rightful return to his family history, as the Thienponts – originally wine merchants in Etikhove (near Ghent in Flanders) from 1842 onwards – bought Château Troplong Mondot in Saint-Emilion in 1921. However, Georges Thienpont was forced to sell it again ten years later at the height of the crisis, and subsequently bought Vieux Château Certan in Pomerol which is now run by his nephew Alexandre.

• AOC: Saint-Emilion
• Surface: 8 hectares
• Terroir: Clay and limestone-clay
• Grape varieties: 70% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc
• Maturation: 12 to 16 months in barrels (50% new, 50% second fill)

Les Chênes de Macquin is the second wine of Château Pavie Macquin which was promoted « Premier Grand Cru Classé » in September 2006. Since 1994, Nicolas Thienpont is managing this property. A family property of 15 hectares, the vineyard of Pavie Macquin is situated on the summit of the Saint-Emilion plateau. The soil is made of clay-limestone.

• AOC : Saint-Emilion
• Surface : 15 hectares
• Terroir : Clay-limestone
• Grape varieties : 84% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc, 2% Cabernet Sauvignon
• Maturation : 16 months in barrels and vats

Château La Prade, located in the town of Saint-Cibard, largely on the limestone plateau but also on hillsides, was bought in 2000 by Nicolas Thienpont. It was spared by the frost phenomenon of April 2017. Merlots are predominant and dense, but always with this note of freshness that brings the limestone rock.

• AOC: Francs Côtes de Bordeaux
• Surface: 7 hectares
• Terroir: Clay-limestone, on clay subsoil
• Grape varieties: 90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc
• Maturation: 12-16 months in barrels of 225 and 500L renewed by thirds