Chateau Carbonnieux Pessac Leognan Bordeaux Complete Guide

Learn everything about Chateau Carbonnieux Pessac Leognan, Bordeaux with wine tasting notes, and wine with food pairings. Learn all the best vintages, the history of the property, information on the vineyards, and winemaking. If you want to read about other important, Bordeaux Chateaux: Links to all Bordeaux Wine Producer Profiles

Chateau Carbonnieux History, Overview

Chateau Carbonnieux has a long and extensive history in the Bordeaux wine appellation. In fact, it’s one of the oldest estates in the entire Bordeaux wine region with a history dating back to the 12th century! The estate takes its name from the Carbonnieu family, who owned the property in 1234. In those formative days, the vineyard was used to produce wine for religious purposes.

By the 1700s, the vineyard had become quite popular. In fact, it was one of the vineyards Thomas Jefferson visited during his stay in Bordeaux. In those days, the estate was known under its Latin name of of Chateau Carbonius.

The original chateau was first constructed during the years when the 100-year war was taking place. This is easily noticed when looking at the unique design that includes a myriad of historical features from the time period. It is interesting to note that Chateau Carbonnieux is credited for being one of the first to begin placing their wine in glass bottles.

Chateau Carbonnieux The Modern Era

Jumping ahead to the modern age for Chateau Carbonnieux, after World War 2 ended, Chateau Carbonnieux was in poor condition. By that time, only 29 hectares of vines were remaining. The original chateau had been uninhabited since the First World War and was also in bad shape.

The cellars and wine-making equipment were in even worse condition. After the Perrin family, headed by Marc Perrin, purchased the property, they renovated the entire estate and replanted a large portion of the vineyard. The cellars were renovated in 1990. Today, Chateau Carbonnieux is managed by his two sons Eric Perrin and Philibert Perrin.

Chateau Carbonnieux has nice neighbors. In fact, they are situated close to Chateau Haut Bailly and Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte. The gravel-based vineyard of Chateau Carbonnieux is planted to red, and white wine grapes. Interestingly, Chateau Carbonnieux is one of the few Bordeaux vineyards that continue maintaining plantings of all 5 red Bordeaux wine varietals.

Chateau Carbonnieux Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Winemaking

The massive 170-hectare estate of Chateau Carbonnieux is perhaps the largest vineyard in Pessac Leognan with 100 hectares planted with vines. The vineyard of Chateau Carbonnieux is almost evenly split between plantings of the grapes with 55 hectares for the production of red wine and 45 hectares used to make white wine.

You can easily divide the vineyard into 3 main sections. All 3 sections are well placed on one large gravel hill. The terroir is gravel, sand, limestone, and clay soils. The large vineyard can be further subdivided into 119 different parcels. There are gravel slopes with elevations that rise to 50 meters at their peak.

Even with all those separate parcels, the vineyard is basically split in two, with the red wine grapes on the gravel and the white wine grapes in soils with more clay and limestone in a cooler micro-climate.

Chateau Carbonnieux has 55 hectares of vines for red wine grapes planted to 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. This marked a change in the vineyard with less Cabernet Sauvignon, more Merlot, and the Carmenere and Malbex have been removed. 45 hectares are reserved for the white wine grape varietals.

For the white Bordeaux wine of Chateau Carbonnieux, the vineyard is planted to 65% Sauvignon Blanc and 35% Semillon. Part of what gives their white wines their unique character is the age of their old Semillon vines, some of which were planted in 1956. All of the Muscadelle has been removed from the vineyards. On average the vines are 26 years of age. Chateau Carbonnieux is one of the few Bordeaux estates to produce close to equal amounts of red and white Bordeaux wine

In 2011, to allow the property to vinify on a parcel-by-parcel basis, Chateau Carbonnieux renovated and remodeled its cellars. They added new, temperature-controlled, stainless steel vats in a myriad of sizes ranging from 150 hectoliters to 200 hectoliters and all the way up to 250 hectoliters. This allows for a plot-by-plot vinification of their Pessac Leognan wine.

Chateau Carbonnieux Winemaking

To produce the red wine of Chateau Carbonnieux, vinification takes place in stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation takes place in tanks with a small portion of the wine going through malolactic in barrel, perhaps 10%. The red wines of Chateau Carbonnieux are aged in an average of 33% new, French oak barrels for an average of 18 months.

To produce the white Bordeaux wine of Chateau Carbonnieux, vinification takes place in 25% new, French oak barrels. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrels. The wine is aged in the same barrels for an average of 10 months before bottling. However, a small portion, about 25% of the white wine is aged in foudres.

In 2020, Chateau Carbinnieux introduced a new white wine, made from 100% Semillon, that comes from their a massal selection from their oldest vines. Cuvee 1941 takes its name from Thomas Jefferson’s visit, during which he tasted the oldest white wine from the property, 1741.

The Best Vintages of Chateau Carbonnieux are: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2005 and 2000. However, it is important to note that the best red wine vintages are often not the same as their white wines. For example, 2013, 2011, and 2007 were all difficult years for red wine. But all 3 of those vintages are sublime for Chateau Carbonnieux’s white wine.

The production here is large. On average, close to 18,000 cases of red wine and 18,000 cases of white wine are produced each vintage by Chateau Carbonnieux. There are two-second wines for both the red and white varieties, Tour Leognan and La Croix de Carbonnieux. Denis Dubourdieu was their consultant starting in 1988.

When to Drink Chateau Carbonnieux, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time

Chateau Carbonnieux can be enjoyed on the young side with decanting. Young vintages can be decanted for an average of 1-2 hours, give or take. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment.

Chateau Carbonnieux is usually better with at least 5-7 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. Chateau Carbonnieux offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 9-17 years of age after the vintage.

Serving and Decanting Chateau Carbonnieux, with Wine, Food, Pairing Tips

Chateau Carbonnieux is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift. The red wine of Chateau Carbonnieux is best served with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes.

Chateau Carbonnieux is a perfect match with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta as well as cheese.

The white wine of Chateau Carbonnieux is a perfect wine to serve with shellfish, sashimi, sushi, all types of seafood, chicken, veal, and cheese.

www.carbonnieux.com