Saint-Emilion is one of the most beautiful wine-producing villages in France. Famous wines are produced in this distinguished world heritage site where Merlot achieves its maximum quality.
The medieval village of Saint-Emilion was accepted by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site both for its historical value and its importance as an exceptional wine-growing terroir.
The expression of “the hill with a thousand chateaux” is not just picturesque: This AOC represents more than 800 winegrowers.
Saint-Emilion's weather is oceanic and temperate, due to the nearby Dordogne, which cools the summers and helps to avoid spring frosts. Autumns are sunny which encourages perfect ripening of the grapes, especially Merlot.
There are 4 types of soils here. In the centre is a limestone plateau, surrounded by chalky soils with clay and silt (also called “molasse”). In the northwest of the AOC, a sandy layer covers mostly clay soils. Finally, in the Dordogne Valley to the south, lighter soils contain alluvial stones and sand.
Saint-Emilion wines thus have a variety of profiles, from very powerful and concentrated like those grown on the limestone plateau, to refined and delicate, like those from the terroirs to the south.
Very little Cabernet-Sauvignon is to be found here, since it ripens too slowly. However, Merlot (60% of vines planted) and Cabernet Franc (30%) attain heights of quality in Saint-Emilion.
The wines from this AOC are generous, warm, full-bodied and intensely crimson-coloured. Their strawberry and red-current nose, is followed up by notes of soft spices, vanilla, leather and smoke that develop with age.
In the mouth, they have solid but velvety tannins, which give these wines a flavourful and fleshy body. The only thing that can match the refinement of the tannins is their strength, which is witness to their potential for longevity.
Average annual production: 81 708 Hl
Surface declared (2009): 1 449 ha
Visit the
Saint-Emilion AOC’s web site.
