Pauillac

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The geographical area lies in the Gironde department, 50 kilometres north of Bordeaux on the left bank of the Gironde estuary.
• The geology rests on Quaternary gravel terraces arranged parallel to the Gironde estuary at elevations of 3 to 30 metres and approximately ten metres in depth.
• These gravel terraces almost entirely overlie marls and limestones dating from the Eocene and Oligocene on which they rest.
• The territory is dissected perpendicularly to the estuary by a dense hydrographic network of Gironde tributaries known locally as the esteys and the jalles.
• Gravel soils of varying sandiness dominate on the ridges, while the depressions display sandy soils over clay, and the palus zones and marshes bordering the estuary show grey and black clays.

• The ruling of the Lesparre tribunal of 29 November 1926, based on local, legitimate, and longstanding usage, granted the right to the appellation to certain parcels in neighbouring communes historically linked to classified growths of Pauillac.

• The wines display a very deep colour and a powerful, full-bodied structure, underpinned by a blend in which Cabernet Sauvignon is particularly dominant.
• The tannic structure derived from this blend gives these wines a remarkable capacity for ageing, developing a bouquet of great complexity after extended cellaring.
• Merlot contributes roundness and fruit, while Cabernet Franc, and more rarely Petit Verdot, reinforce the structure and complexity of the wines.
• An ageing period of at least six months is essential to encourage the tannin–anthocyanin interactions required to stabilise the colour and to soften the tannins, smoothing away their hardness.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in France

Sources

• Product specification (BO Agri, PDF) — approved 27 avril 2026
• Official INAO text (show_texte)
• INAO product entry
• Official trade body site — CIVB