Château Tertre Roteboeuf

This tiny 6ha vineyard is tucked into a limestone ‘combe’ or amphitheatre of vines on the southwestern facing slopes of Saint-Émilion. With great sun exposure and good elevation, this sheltered microclimate is enhanced by low vine training.
To the east of the town, it’s a stone’s throw from Troplong Mondot, Pavie and Larcis Ducasse and is right next to Château Belfont Belcier. In the 1970s, François Mitjavile started making the wine when his wife inherited the property. For his first vintage in 1978 he changed the name of the property from Le Tertre to Le Tertre Roteboeuf, and a new estate was born. He slowly introduced new oak, started picking later and reduced yields.
Farmed sustainably, the wine is now a Saint-Émilion superstar as is François. He’s an entertaining guide, welcoming you into the sitting room of his 18th century farmhouse.
He sells his wines directly rather than through ‘La Place’ and has shunned the classification – before it became ‘fashionable’ to do so.
He has stopped using the prefix ‘Château’ since 1994, he needs neither this nor a place in the classification, his wines are systematically some of the most sort after and pricey wine of the appellation. The wines and big, rich and exciting.

The tasting takes places in the old semi-underground cellar that has no air conditioning; he prefers a natural temperature to help the wines barrel age. He uses only indigenous yeast, there is no second wine but he also owns and runs l’Aurage in Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux and Roc de Cambes in Côtes de Bourg.