Château de Cérons

On the heights of a terrace above the Garonne River, the Château de Cérons is a wine estate born at the end of the 17th century. Located in the village of Cérons, on a gravel soil, the property produces sweet wines and gravel wines. It offers red wines, Bordeaux gold wines and dry white wines from Cérons.

The producer

This magnificent wine-growing chartreuse is listed as a historical monument. Since its creation, the Château de Cérons has always been dedicated to the cultivation of the vine and the production of wines. The Marquis of Calvimont in the 18th century, then the family of the architect Roger Expert, are among the owners of the estate who have been committed to improving the quality of Cérons wines.

In 1958, the property was bought by Suzanne and Jean Perromat. Both heirs of families with a long history of winemaking, they bring to Cérons their passion and the know-how inscribed in the traditions they received from their own forefathers. The château has been run since 2012 by Caroline and Xavier Perromat, their son and his wife.

The winery

The vineyard covers 30 hectares of an exceptional Bordeaux terroir. Two particularities distinguish the appellation. The first concerns the subsoil made up of asteriated limestone on which rest alluvial gravel and the second is the microclimate, which offers ideal conditions for the development of Botrytis Cinerea. This singular soil is fully expressed in the wines of Château de Cérons. The vintages are marked by a beautiful minerality and offer a unique, very precise aromatic palette.

The grape varieties include Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadelle and Sauvignon Gris for the white grapes and the king grapes of Bordeaux for the reds: Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

In a constant search for quality, Xavier and Caroline Perromat committed the estate to the EMS (Environmental Management System) approach as soon as they took over in 2012. They have thus developed reasoned agricultural practices, respectful of the environment: biological treatments, use of plant cover, individualized monitoring for each plot, exclusively mechanical weeding, etc. These changes were rewarded in 2019 with HVE (High Environmental Value) certification.

The wines

The Chateau de Cérons in AOC Cérons vintage 2016 is a great sweet Bordeaux wine. The blend gives pride of place to Semillon, with 88% of this grape variety. It is completed by Sauvignon Blanc and Gris and a small touch of Muscadelle. The manual harvest allows us to harvest the grapes at over-ripeness and to select the grapes showing Botrytis at the "rotten roasted" stage, to then produce a balanced and fresh wine with an aromatic bouquet characteristic of this terroir. The nose is very fresh with a fruity palette of yellow peach, lemon, notes of heather honey and acidic nuances. This is a powerful and straightforward wine.

The Chateau de Cérons in AOC Graves Rouges vintage 2019 is an aromatic and rich wine with great power and balance. It is made from a blend of 40% Merlot and 60% Cabernet Sauvignon. The nose is fruity with a beautiful depth, nuances of strawberry, cherry and chocolate notes. The mouth is greedy, with very velvety tannins. The cuvée has received multiple mentions in the specialized press, Decanter has given it a score of 91/100, James Suckling a score of 90/100 and the German magazine vvWine a score of 18.5/20.