The ancestors of the Duffau-Lagarrosse family, who presently own and manage Château Beauséjour, originally purchased the estate in 1847. Just under seven hectares in size, the estate was once part of a larger estate that was divided into two parts: Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse and Beau-Séjour Bécot.

The Duffau-Lagarrosse family have worked hard to maintain Beauséjour’s reputation as one of the finest wines in Saint-Emilion.

The vineyards are located west of the town of Saint-Emilion overlooking the right bank of the Dordogne River. The soil is a remarkable blend of clay and asteriated limestone. The vines are in a single block and profit from superb sun exposure. The average age is roughly 38 years. Winegrowing at Beauséjour is definitely traditional, and chemical sprays are used sparingly and only when necessary. The vines are meticulously tended, with Guyot simple pruning, bud pruning, leaf thinning, and green harvesting. The grapes are harvested relatively late for optimum ripeness, sorted a first time during picking, and then again on a sorting table. They are lightly crushed and then put into small concrete temperature-controlled vats. Long fermentation brings out the best of the fruit and malolactic fermentation takes place in vat.

The wine is aged in stave-wood oak barrels for 14 to 16 months, during which time it is racked four or five times and topped up every week.

Wines from each grape variety and each plot are separately fermented prior to the final blend, usually made one or two months before bottling. Château Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse produces a second wine called Croix de Beauséjour, but not in all vintages. The magnificent cellars , carved out of solid rock, are definitely worth a visit.

Beauséjour has a great deal of finesse and unique mineral overtones (due to the limestone soil).

In the Bottle

After the monumental 1990, the Château Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse went through a mediocre patch punctuated by a couple of good years (1993 and 1996).

Vintages since 2001 have been not only better, but also more consistent.

Château Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse is among the region's up and coming châteaux.

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Beauséjour, Croix de Beauséjour (second wine)