SAINT-EMILION – Pierre and Monique Seillan run Chateau Lassegue, a small estate of modest stature amidst many of the most important chateaux of the Saint-Emilion district of Bordeaux. Indeed, Chateau Pavie’s impressive palatial new winery is just down the street. The legendary Chateau Ausone is another of the neighbors, as is highly regarded Chateau Canon-la-Gaffeliere.
Yet Lassegue is little known, a condition Pierre, the winemaker, fervently believes will change someday, for his heart is firmly planted in the 60 acres of sloping vineyards of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and just a tiny swath of Cabernet Sauvigon, at the top of Lassegue’s estate, where it gets maximum exposure to the sun.
Pierre also makes wine in California, producing the acclaimed Verite for Jackson Family Wines, and in Tuscany, where he oversees production of Jackson Family’s Tenuta di Arceno. He fell in love with the vineyards of Lassegue and purchased the property in partnership with Jackson Family Wines in 2003. The vines at Lasseague range in age between 40 and 70 years.
The chateau was in disrepair, however, and the reputation of its wines greatly diminished when he, Monique and the Jacksons, Jess and Barbara, bought the property.
Since the purchase, the cellar has been renovated and the rows of gleaming new stainless steel fermentation tanks signal the beginning of a new era for Lassegue. The wines of Lassegue were once rated Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classe, but lost that prestigious designation some time ago.
Pierre is optimistic Lassegue will regain Grand Cru Classe status, but must wait until he has ten good vintages under his belt to submit for the classification review, which occurs but once every ten years.
Lassegue produces a first wine and a second wine from the estate, with the first wine under the Chateau Lassegue label coming from the vines higher on the property, where the sun exposure is best and the well-drained soils impart a touch of minerality to the wines.
“Chateau Lassegue is the expression of the hillside,” said Pierre. “In the wine you can smell the calcaire from the hillside.”
Lassegue was the first wine I tasted during Bordeaux primeurs, the annual introduction of the latest vintage (2015) to the Bordeaux wine trade. The 2015 vintage is very promising for Lassegue, showing plump, juicy fruit with firm but silky tannins and moderate levels of alcohol.
It should be a wine that can be enjoyed young as well as a wine that has the structure and fruit to age. It is a wine for the U.S. market to watch, for in a world of prohibitively expensive Bordeaux, Lassegue is priced well below most of its more famous neighbors at $80 suggested retail, and widely distributed because of its connection to the Jackson Family Wines distribution network.
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