Château Lagrange Saint Julien 2019

Classified as a Third Growth in 1855, the character of Lagrange's unique terroir and their winemaking team’s expertise have allowed this 2019 vintage to surpass even the highest expectations. It boasts both phenolic richness and freshness in the fruit. This is a powerful, creamy, smooth wine. With a record 80% Cabernet Sauvignon dominating the blend, the Lagrange 2019 blend will go down in history. The expressive, aromatic nose opens with black cherry, blackcurrant and licorice. In the palate, the entry is silky and plump with powerful, velvety tannins. This distinguished and elegant 2019 will take its place among the estate's iconic vintages. The aging potential is also remarkable.

Blend: 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot

Château Lagrange started out life as Maison Noble de Lagrange Monteil as far back as the middle ages. Historical documents mention the vineyard as far back as 1631. During the 18th century, the picturesque estate was the property of Baron de Brane. The Baron was better known for counting among his holdings, Brane Cantenac and Brane Mouton, which we are more familiar with as Château Mouton Rothschild today. When the Baron was in charge of the estate, the wines were sold as Baron St. Julien.  

Like most Bordeaux vineyards, the property passed through numerous hands. For a time, it belonged to John Lewis Brown who owned Château Cantenac Brown in Margaux, as well as Château Brown in Pessac Leognan. However, Chateau Lagrange did not become well-known for producing wine until 1842. That is when the owner, Count Duchatel added a drainage system in the vineyard. This helped improve the wine immensely. While drainage in vineyards is commonplace today, that was very forward-thinking in 1842. Deep in debt, the owners began breaking up the estate, selling portions of their vineyard to survive. The first major sale took place in 1840. Those sales caused Château Lagrange to downsize from its massive 280 hectares to a manageable 157 hectares.

In 1970, 32 hectares were sold to Château Ducru Beaucaillou. Other parcels were sold to Henri Martin for use in Château Gloria. By 1983, the remaining holdings of Lagrange were purchased by the Japanese company, Suntory from the Cendoya family, who had owned Château Lagrange since 1925. All the effort and investment expended by Suntory has allowed Chateau Lagrange to produce a much better wine. Today the estate has 118 hectares under vine. The vineyard is planted to 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, and 7% Petit Verdot. The Petit Verdot was added to the vineyards in 1988. Over the years, the vineyard has continued to increase its percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon.

The vineyard is one massive block of vines that can be divided into 102 different parcels. However, the easiest way to think of Château Lagrange is by knowing all their vines are dispersed over 2, gently sloping, gravel hillsides. The slopes are well placed in the west of the Saint Julien appellation, close to Châteaux Gruaud Larose and Branaire Ducru. At the peak of their vineyards, the hillsides reach up to 24 meters, which puts their vines at the highest elevation in the entire Saint Julien appellation. Today, the average age of the vines is more than 35 years of age. The terroir is gravel, sand and clay soils. There are also parcels with deposits of iron. The vineyard is planted to a vine density of 8,500 vines per hectare. They use optical sorting technology during the harvest.

The best vintages of Château Lagrange are: 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2010, 2009, 2006, 2005 and 2000.

Serve Château Lagrange with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes, or with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, salmon, mushrooms, and pasta as well as fine cheeses and charcuterie.