The estate’s history begins in the 1600s, when the land was part of the greater Beychevelle estate. The owner, Bernard de Valette, left behind him a massive arrangement of debts. In order to satisfy his creditors, Beychevelle was sold off and the estate divided up. Whilst some of these successor estates were reunited by subsequent owners, the part we know today as Branaire-Ducru has remained independent. It was originally purchased by Jean-Baptiste Braneyre in 1680.
It was his descendants that retained control for over a hundred years, though his daughter, Marie Braneyre, married Pierre de Luc, and so it is the de Luc name that is associated with this period in the estate’s history. They survived the Revolution and, despite having been arrested, subsequently had four children. Their sons were called Louis and Justin Duluc (a strategic contraction of the family name, given attitudes towards the aristocracy at that time.)
The Duluc family remained at Branaire during the 1855 classification, during which the property was classified as a fourth growth. A year later and Louis Duluc died without any immediate heir; consequently the wine was managed by various other family members. By 1875 his descendant Gustave Ducru had gained control along with his sister, before buying up her share. Ironically, when he died she assumed full control. Her death in 1899 meant the party was bequeathed to an assortment of nephews.
The estate was sold off in 1919 to Jean-Michel Tapie. His tenure was not one of distinction, and the wines were feeble imitations of the terroir’s full potential. The estate carried on with this lamentable state of affairs until 1988, when it was bought up by Patrick Maroteaux.
Chateau Branaire-Ducru is situated in the south-eastern part of St. Julien, with its immediate neighbours being the parent estate Beychevelle and Chateau St. Pierre. There are 50 hectares of vineyards, running west-east over Medoc terroir of Quarternary alluvial gravels. Vines are planted at 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot, with the average vine age approaching 40 years. Harvesting is by hand and fermentation takes place in stainless steel thermo-regulated vats. Wine spends two year in oak, of which half of all barrels are new wood. Wine is egg-white fined prior to being bottled without filtration. The grand vin is predictably named Chateau Branaire-Ducru, of which 15,000 cases or so can be found in a given year. The second wine, Chateau Duluc, named after the aforementioned Duluc (or De Luc) family, is produced to the tune of 7,000 cases a year.
PDF
Excel
