O VINARIJI / ABOUT THE WINERY
Imanje Chateau Pichon Baron ima dugu povijest koja je započela krajem 17. stoljeća. To je razdoblje bilo poznato pod nazivom Veliki Siècle, ili “veliko stoljeće”, u odnosu na dolazak Luja XIV. Na francusko prijestolje 1661. godine. 1689. godine Pierre Desmezures de Rauzan, utjecajni trgovac vinom i upravitelj prestižnih imanja Latour i Margaux, kupio je parcele vinove loze u blizini imanja Latour kako bi stvorio Enclos Rauzan.Te su loze bile dio miraza njegove kćeri Thérèse kada se udala za baruna Jacquesa Pichona de Longuevillea 1694. godine, godine u kojoj je osnovano imanje Pichon Baron. Rođeno je slavno imanje s trajnom reputacijom. Generacijama je ostao u istoj obitelji.
1850. godine posjed je podijeljen na dva dijela. Odjeljak baruna Raoula Pichona de Longuevillea postao je imanje Pichon Baron. Drugi dio, koji je pripadao njegovim trima sestrama, postao je Pichon Comtesse. Barun Raoul bio je ponosan na svoje prestižno imanje i 1851. godine naručio je impozantni dvorac nadahnut renesansnom arhitekturom kakvu danas poznajemo. Ovaj jedinstveno šarmantan i romantičan dvorac, sa svoje dvije amblematične kupole, od tada ponosno stoji u srcu vinograda.
1855. godine vino je klasificirano kao Drugi Grand Cru Classé prema sustavu rangiranja koji je zahtijevao car Napoleon III., Koji je želio predstaviti velika Bordeauxova vina. 1933. godine obitelj Pichon de Longueville prodala je imanje obitelji Bouteiller, koja je više od 50 godina upravljala Châteauom Pichon Baronom. 1987. godine imanje je kupila AXA Millésimes, čiji je cilj omogućiti velikim vinima iz vinograda slavne prošlosti da ostvare svoj puni potencijal. U suradnji s Pariškim centrom Pompidou pokrenut je arhitektonski natječaj kako bi se imanju osigurale nove operativne zgrade. Sveobuhvatna rekonstrukcija fermentacijske prostorije i podruma te obnova dvorca započela je 1988. godine. Od tada se slika zamka iz 19. stoljeća odražavala u ukrasnom bazenu koji se veličanstveno protezao prije njega. A od 2008. godine na njegovom imanju krije se podzemni podrum koji podsjeća na Nautilus Julesa Vernea, s pogledom na vodu i nebo. Podrum sa bačvama nadopunjuje proizvodni proces u kojem je izvrsnost najvažnija, u najfinijoj tradiciji velikih vina Pauillac.
The estate was founded in the late 17th Century. This period was known as the Grand Siècle, or “great century”, in reference to Louis XIV’s 1661 accession to the French throne. In 1689 Pierre Desmezures de Rauzan, an influential wine merchant and steward of the prestigious Latour and Margaux estates, bought plots of vines close to the Latour estate to create Enclos Rauzan. These vines were part of his daughter Thérèse’s dowry when she married Baron Jacques Pichon de Longueville in 1694, the year in which the Pichon Baron estate was founded. An illustrious estate, with an enduring reputation, was born. It remained in the same family for generations.
In 1850 the property was divided in two. Baron Raoul Pichon de Longueville’s section became the Pichon Baron estate. The second section, belonging to his three sisters, became Pichon Comtesse. Baron Raoul was proud of his prestigious property, and in 1851 he commissioned the imposing château inspired by Renaissance architecture that we know today. This uniquely charming and romantic château, with its two emblematic turrets, has stood proudly at the vineyard’s heart ever since.
During the Universal Exhibition of 1855, the wine was classed as a Second Grand Cru Classé according to the ranking system requested by Emperor Napoleon III, who wished to showcase Bordeaux’s great wines.
In 1933 the Pichon de Longueville family sold the property to the Bouteiller family, who managed Château Pichon Baron for over 50 years. In 1987 the estate was bought by AXA Millésimes, whose aim is to enable great wines from vineyards with a glorious past to achieve their full potential. An architectural competition was launched in collaboration with the Paris Pompidou Centre to provide the estate with new operational buildings. The comprehensive reconstruction of the fermenting room and cellar, and renovation of the château, began in 1988. Since then, the 19th century château’s image has been reflected in an ornamental pool stretching majestically before it. And since 2008, its silvery expanse conceals an underground cellar, reminiscent of Jules Verne’s Nautilus, with views of both the water and the sky. The barrel cellar complements a production process in which excellence is paramount, in the finest tradition of great Pauillac wines.
