Frédéric
Rouzaud
CEO OF CHAMPAGNE LOUIS ROEDERER
In 1995, my father Jean-Claude Rouzaud discovered Château de Pez and its rich, longstanding history. Created in 1452, for two centuries Château de Pez belonged to the Pontac family, also owners of Château Haut-Brion and pioneers in showcasing great terroirs.
The Pez terroir was particularly remarkable with its ideal location in a single block and charming château. Plus, the wine was not classified. My father needed no more to pique his interest, enticed by the idea of reviving this sleeping beauty.
His decision was final after tasting the Château’s incredible collection of vintages. With its well-rounded, fine, elegant style, Pez challenges the idea of what a Saint-Estèphe wine is.
This is how Château de Pez found its place in the “Roederer Collection”, a constellation of very unique terroirs in France and around the world. This collection of ultra-contemporary wines is part of a great tradition. Produced in small quantities, we strive to make them the jewels of their appellation.
With self-sacrifice, humility and passion, we have replanted the vineyard over the last few years and endowed Château de Pez with everything it needs to proudly create its own style of wines. Led by a dynamic team free to take initiative, the estate is taking great strides in terms of balance and production. The sleeping beauty now has all the makings of a Grand Cru. I believe Pez is at a turning point in its history.
Nicolas
Glumineau
GENERAL MANAGER
At both Pez and Pichon Comtesse, every plot is cultivated, fermented and tasted separately.
This plot-by-plot approach is first and foremost about producing a delicious, expressive and fruity wine.
Saint-Estèphe has always been a noble, connoisseurs’ wine. Its highly concentrated tannic structure can give it a sharp character at times, with a slightly higher acidity compared to other Médoc appellations.
Here in the vineyard, we strive to produce tannins at peak ripeness, the point at which we reach that silky texture. The new vat room has smaller vats, enabling us to ferment each plot separately in the best possible conditions and perfect the wine’s balance thanks to very gentle extraction. By “letting the wine live”, we achieve a smooth structural complexity.
Pez wine thus bears the distinctive hallmarks of Saint-Estèphe with a modern, elegant twist. Since 2005, Pez has been on an exciting intellectual and technical journey of precision winemaking, which forms part of the long history of wine as a whole. The aim is to reveal the gem that the Château de Pez terroir truly is.
The estate was founded by the nobleman Jean de Briscos.
The Pontac family, who owned Château Haut-Brion, acquired Château de Pez thereby writing it into the history books of great Bordeaux wines
Sold as national property during the French Revolution, Pez successively belonged to several influential families in Bordeaux.
Pez entered the “Roederer Collection” thanks to Frédéric Rouzaud, the seventh generation to run the Louis Roederer Champagne House.
The Château was classified a Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel in 2003