The Winery Le Benaudin of Sauternes of Bordeaux

Police ordered the evacuation of more local residents in the Landiras area yesterday (Monday 18 July), with Liber Pater’s vineyard in Graves also evacuated as firefighters continued to try to contain a large forest fire that has been burning for the past week. A ‘fog’ of fire smoke behind Liber Pater vines on Tuesday morning (19 July), said owner Loïc Pasquet, who was briefly able to return to the site. Smoke hasn’t been a problem so far, he said. Credit: Loïc Pasquet. ‘The pol ...

A magnum of Lafite Rothschild 1887 sold for £22,500 ($28,300) at a Sotheby’s auction of ‘vinous treasures’ spanning nearly 200 years. The wine, held in storage with Octavian group in Wiltshire, had a pre-sale high estimate of £18,000. A single bottle of Château d’Yquem 1831 sold for £27,500 (pre-sale high estimate: £20,000). Another bottle of Yquem, from the 1896 vintage, sold for £15,000, tripling its pre-sale high estimate. ‘An extraordinary wine from a very great Sauternes vintage,’ said Sere ...

Montégut, who is already technical director of the Premier Cru Classé estate Château Suduiraut in Sauternes, will replace Jean-René Matignon who last year announced his intention to step down after more than 30 years in the role. He will formally take on his new responsibilities from the end of April when Matignon retires. Having worked together with Montégut since his arrival at Suduiraut in 2004, Christian Seely, MD of owner AXA Millésimes, said that during this time, Montégut had been respons ...