Chateau Chasse-Spleen is the champion estate of Moulis, a relatively diminutive commune on Gironde’s left bank. It is nestled between St Julien to the north and Margaux to the south and this perhaps accounts for the fact that the 1855 Classification overlooked the area. Nevertheless, Chateau Chasse-Spleen is certainly capable of contending with third and fourth growth estates and, if it had even existed at the time, it would surely have been included.
In 1560 records show that vines were planted on the estate, though this may not have been for the first time. Vines were not the preclusive crop they are today; beet and other crops were grown, and there was also a sizeable amount of pasture land.
The landlord was called Gressier, and his family retained control of the estate until in 1822 France’s labyrinthine inheritance laws resulted in the fragmentation of the property into two halves.
This literally meant that half a vineyard, half a garden and half a chateau were apportioned to each respective party. One half passed to the Castaing family, descendents of the Gressiers, and this was to become the modern day Chateau Chasse-Spleen.
At the time of the 1855 Classification it was not yet considered an independent property, being among the Castaing’s extensive holdings at the time.
In the 1860s it became an independent property under the aegis of Jean-Jacques Castaing, though the reasoning behind the name is subject to much speculation. Literally, it means “to chase away the blues” or “dispels melancholy”. This probably stems from when Lord Byron paid a visit to the estate, during his journey from London to Seville. He claimed it did wonders for his mood, a "remède pour chasser le spleen".
With the dawn of the 20th century, the property was well regarded. The Castaing dynasty met a sad end when in 1909 Jean-Jacques’ widow passed away and the property was sold to the German firm Seigneitz. Surprisingly, this state of affairs survived the Great War, even though those working on the harvest were suspected of being German collaborators.
For this reason, or perhaps simply to excuse the act, the cellar was ransacked and the wine stolen in 1914. In 1922 the estate was sold at auction to Frank Lahary, who then passed it on to his daughter and her husband. In 1970, after numerous rough patches, they sold it on to Jacques Merlaut.
The Merlaut family, who own a vast wine consortium, currently possess several illustrious properties, including: Haut-Bages-Liberal, La Gurgue, Gruaud Larose, Citran and Ferrière. They began their collection, however, with Chasse-Spleen. Jacques Merlaut passed the property onto Bernadette Villars and her husband in 1976, after which she shifted her career away from teaching to winemaking.
After a period of intensive training with Professor Emile Peynaud, she was soon a widely respected figure. Under her aegis Chasse-Spleen soared up the quality scale in the patriarchal world of chateau ownership. Regrettably, she and her husband died in a mountaineering accident, leaving their two daughters Celine and Claire behind. Claire has assumed her mother’s position and quality has yet to dip – the estate’s wines have continually improved.
The soils are primarily Garonne gravel, though chalky clay is present also. The vineyards stretch across 80 hectares, with the vines themselves averaging at thirty years of age. Wine is fermented in stainless steel vats with temperature control, and wines are then aged for twelve to fourteen months. Wine is fined with egg white prior to bottling.
Cabernet Sauvignon is planted at 73%, Merlot at 20% and 7% of the land is set aside for Petit Verdot. Harvesting is performed by hand, and the soils between rows are ploughed – not planted. The grand vin is Chateau-Spleen, of which about 28,000 cases can be found each year. The estate has two second wines, L’Ermitage de Chasse-Spleen and l’Oratoire de Chasse-Spleen, of which there are about 14,000 cases to be had.
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