Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion

A chateau located in the Pessac-Léognan appellation, located very close to the city of Bordeaux.

In the early 16th century the land belonged to the family de Rostaing who planted the vines before passing it on to the Lestonnac family in 1540. It remained under their ownership for over a century until 1654 when it was willed by Madame de Lestonnac to the Pères Lazarists, priests of the Mission of Saint-Vincent de Paul.

The priests cultivated grapes for almost 130 years before the French Revolution and it’s anti-clerical stance which included the expropriation of property by the state. It was bought by Martial-Victor Vaillant in 1792 and for a century it was run by the Chiapella family.

In 1919 it was sold to Fréderic Otto Woltner. Woltner’s sons, Henri and Fernand, embraced innovations in viticulture and restructured the vineyards to yield the very best grapes. Henri became manager of the estate in 1921 and pioneered the use of glass linked tanks in the vinification process – as a result he was heralded as a “wine-maker genius”. The entrepreneurial Woltners received the neighbouring Chateau La Tour Haut-Brion from widower Marie Coustau by way of her will. In 1931 the successful duo acquired the nearby Chateau Laville Haut-Brion, producing a dry white wine considered one of the very best in Graves.

Though it passed to Fernand’s daughter, Françoise Wolttner, family issues meant that the estate assets were sold to Domaine Clarence Dillon 1983.

The wines produced are renowned for their consistent excellence throughout the last hundred years and beyond. It is critically acclaimed and has even received a 100 point rating from influential wine critic Robert Parker. As a result of this success many argue that La Mission should be listed as a Premier Cru.

The vineyard is situated on stony soil that extends nearly 21 hectares between the two portions of Pessac and Léognan. The grape variety distribution is 48 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 45 percent Merlot and 7 percent Cabernet Franc. Case production averages at 8,000 a year.