Location and Terroir
Château Pavie Macquin is located on the limestone plateau of Saint-Émilion above the town in the Bordeaux region. The vineyards are situated in a late-ripening plateau position characterised by strong clay soils. Their chalky-clay soils contain, at a depth of around 20 to 150 centimetres, astérised limestone as well as molasse and old colluvial deposits with silt.
Vineyards and Grape Varieties
The technical documentation for 2022 lists 14.5 hectares of planted vineyard area, of which 12.88 hectares are in production. The average age of the vines is 35 years, and the planting density is 6,600 vines per hectare. Merlot dominates cultivation and the wines, complemented by Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. For 2022, the cuvée consisted of 80 per cent Merlot, 19 per cent Cabernet Franc and 1 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon.
The documented work includes traditional ploughing, natural cover cropping, manual removal of shoots, leaf plucking, thinning and harvesting. For new plantings of Cabernet Franc, an internal bulk selection is used; the vines are grown in warmer parcels with pronounced limestone features.
Wines and Ageing
The Château produces Château Pavie Macquin as its first wine and Les Chênes de Macquin as its second wine. The lots are vinified and matured separately. Château Pavie Macquin is described as a red wine with power, richness, minerality and freshness; Cabernet Franc contributes to structure and complexity.
For the 2022 vintage, gravity filling of the concrete tanks with whole berries and parcel-by-parcel vinification are documented. Ageing on fine lees lasted 16 to 20 months in barriques, of which 50 per cent were new and 50 per cent one-year-old barrels. Clarification and filtration were carried out only if needed.
History and Classification
The Château is named after Albert Macquin (1852–1911), who promoted grafted vines as a means of rebuilding the vineyards damaged by phylloxera. From 1887 onwards, he acquired several properties in Saint-Émilion; this gave rise to an estate of around 26 hectares at the time. Nicolas Thienpont took over the management in 1994. Château Pavie Macquin is listed in the official Grands Crus classification of Saint-Émilion for the harvest from 2022 as Premier Grand Cru Classé.
