Saint-Emilion

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Accessory grape varieties

Terroir

• The Tertiary-era calcareous plateau with asteria limestone presents three distinct soil zones: thin calcareous soils to the west, clay-limestone soils to the east, and a thick silty-clay cover in the centre.
• Around the plateau, the molasse of the 'Fronsadais,' dating from the Oligocene, outcrops on slopes that are generally steeper to the south and west than to the north, bearing calcareous soils that are often clay-silt in texture.
• The north-western part of the zone is covered by a sandy sheet of Quaternary alluvium locally containing a sandy-clay layer, while an extremely high clay content appears in places in the subsoil.
• A network of underground galleries estimated at around one hundred kilometres beneath Saint-Émilion and the surrounding plateaux, created by stone extraction, is frequently used as a cellar, as the constant temperature of 12 °C to 16 °C and the humidity levels are ideally suited to the ageing of wines.
• A first line of linear, steep hillsides forms amphitheatre-shaped combes, one of which, facing south, is home to the medieval town of Saint-Émilion, with a cliff edge reaching 100 metres in altitude framed by a belt of holm oaks described as 'Mediterranean' in character.

• The Charter of Falaise of 1199 gave a considerable boost to the vineyard under English occupation, and the establishment of the port of Libourne in 1269 opened the route for wine shipments.
• The first winegrowers' syndicate in France was created in Saint-Émilion in 1884, and the first wine cooperative in the Bordeaux region, the Union de Producteurs de Saint-Émilion, was founded there in 1931.
• In 1936, the Saint-Émilion appellation d'origine contrôlée was defined by decree, its geographical area resting on the historic boundaries of the Jurade de Saint-Émilion.

• Merlot, the very largely dominant grape variety, contributes to the wine its intense red colour, its alcoholic richness, and an aromatic complexity evoking red and black fruits, with suppleness and silky tannins.
• Cabernet franc, known locally as 'bouchet,' lends the wine a lightly spiced aromatic finesse, freshness, and a more pronounced tannic structure.

• The quality of the calcareous, clay, gravelly, and sandy soils, combined with a mesoclimate favourable to vine growing, gives the wines richness and complexity.

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 juillet 2023 publié au JORF du 9 août 2023, JORF 9 août 2023
• Official INAO text (show_texte)
• INAO product entry
• Official trade body site — Conseil des Vins de Saint-Émilion