Saint Émilion

Château Grand Corbin

A map dating back to 1811 shows five châteaux just a stone’s throw from each other all going by the name of Corbin. As is the case for numerous Bordeaux wine estates successive owners left their mark on the estate including a Prince of Wales (son of Edward III) a Polignac nobleman a royal guard a wine négociant from Libourne and a lawyer turned judge at the commercial court. Amongst all of the names however one is of particular interest to us that of Guillaume Ignace Bouchereau who became the Baron de Saint-Georges. This man who had made his fortune in the sugar cane plantations of Santo Domingo decided to return to the Libourne region at the age of 41. He fell in love with the Corbin land and was the first in the late 18th century to plant vines there. As esquire and president treasurer of France of the 'Généralité of Guyenne' he purchased Château Saint-Georges and Château Grand Corbin. The former sugar cane planter thus became an important winegrower. He was a veritable pioneer and visionary. He took his experience from working in the sugar cane plantations and applied the island techniques to the Corbin vineyards introducing meticulous growing methods. He saw the importance of using qualified workers and he gave very precise instructions to his estate manager. He recognised the domaine’s potential and drew up a strict set of surprisingly modern specifications which included training his employees in pruning techniques replacing missing vine stocks selecting the varietals best suited to the terroir and eliminating ancient growing practices to improve quality. This great visionary made his mark on the history of the Libourne wine region. During the French Revolution the estate was seized as a national asset and broken up leaving Guillaume Ignace Bouchereau no choice but to depart from the land of Corbin. During the recent merger we considered calling the new entity Château Grand Corbin Bouchereau as a homage to this innovative and ambitious man. Reconnecting to our past is also a way of continuing the work of our ancestors and guaranteeing the future of this remarkable grand cru. These two domaines albeit separated for a period of time have now been reconciled with their history…