| Region of Production: | Margaux AOP |
| Winery Location: | Labarde |
| Year Established: | 1811 |
| Classification: | third growth, Médoc 1855 |
Vineyard Holdings
94 ha in Margaux, 50 ha in the Haut-Médoc
- 60% Cabernet Sauvignon
- 32% Merlot
- 5% Cabernet Franc
- 3% Petit Verdot
Top Wines Produced & Inaugural Vintages
- Château Giscours
- La Sirène de Giscours: Second wine selected from young vines
- Le Haut-Médoc de Giscours: Haut-Médoc AOC wine
- La Rosé de Giscours: Bordeaux AOC wine
Average Total Production
- 300,000 bottles
Summary
In 1552 Pierre de Lhomme bought the “Guyscoutz” estate and planted its first vines; 300 years later the estate hit its stride under the capable management of Pierre Skawinski – a pioneer of gravity-flow in Bordeaux – and the Comte de Pescatore, who purchased the property in 1845. A highly acclaimed winery for the remainder of the 19th century, Château Giscours slumped in the beginning of the 20th. Picked up by an Algerian family by the early 1950s and then by the Dutch owner of Château du Tertre in 1995, in whose hands it remains. Scandal mounted in the aftermath of the 1995 vintage, when there were accusations of illegal wine additions. In 1999 French courts fined Château Giscours for adding oak chips to the wine and later brought a fraud case alleging that the winery mixed Haut-Médoc and Margaux fruit in its second wine. But in the years since, the winery has rebounded with a string of successful vintages and looks to resume its rightful potential as a third growth of Margaux.
Style & Vinification Techniques
Château Giscours has had such ups and downs in recent years that it is difficult to determine the reigning style, but recent vintages have focused more on heft and concentration than typical Margaux elegance. The grand vin ages for 15-18 months in 55% new French oak. For La Sirène and Le Haut-Médoc the new oak is reduced to 20%.
Producer Website: Château Giscours