Chateau Poujeaux Haut Medoc Moulis Bordeaux, Complete Guide

Learn everything about Chateau Poujeaux Haut-Medoc, Bordeaux with wine tasting notes and wine with food pairing tips. Learn all the best vintages, a history of the property and information on the vineyards and winemaking. If you want to read about other important, Bordeaux Chateaux: Links to all Bordeaux Wine Producer Profiles

Chateau Poujeaux History, Overview

Chateau Poujeaux has an interesting history that can be traced all the way back to the 16th Century. At the time, the owner of Chateau Latour in Pauillac, Gaston De L’Isle, owned the estate. He was also responsible for building the classic Chateau de la Riviere in Fronsac. During the tenure of De L’Isle, the Moulis estate was known as La Salle de Poujeaux. Over the years, or should I say centuries, Chateau Poujeaux, like numerous Bordeaux estates has been the property of a multitude of owners.

In fact, the owner of Chateau Beychevelle in St. Julien, Marquis François Etienne de Brassier was one of those owners. Over the centuries, Chateau Poujeaux was bought, sold, split up, and divided. It was not until 1921 when the Theil family became the owners of the property that all the previously divided sections were brought back together again.

The true modern era for Chateau Poujeaux began quite recently. It started in 2008 when Jean Theil sold Chateau Poujeaux to the Cuvelier family, who were already well known for owning Clos Fourtet in St. Emilion. Once the Cuvelier family, headed by the young, dynamic, Mathieu Cuvelier took charge, things changed for the better. The winemaking facilities were modernized and the farming technique used in the vineyards of Chateau Poujeaux was also changed.

They reduced yields and began picking later, giving them riper fruit. They also moved to an organic vineyard management approach and are looking at Biodynamic farming as well. All of this work in the vineyards has helped produce the best wines in the history of the estate. To prove this, all you have to do is taste a bottle of what is being produced currently at the estate, and compare it to the wines here made in prior vintages.

The best vintages of Chateau Poujeaux are: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006 and 2005.

Chateau Poujeaux Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Winemaking

The 68 hectare Moulis vineyard of Chateau Poujeaux is planted to 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, 9% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. The vineyard is planted to a vine density of 10,000 vines per hectare.

The terroir is gravel-based soils, typical of the area. What is less typical, is that the majority of the vineyard is in one large parcel. Their best vines are placed on gravel hillside parcels with elevations that can be up to 25 meters at their peak on the Poujeaux plateau. The average age of the vines remains close to 35 years, although some vines are older.

While most of their vines are situated close to the chateau, they have other parcels in the Moulis appellation as well,

Sustainable viticultural practices take place at all the Cuvelier family estates in Bordeaux and Chateau Poujeaux is no exception. This includes trellising in the traditional Guyot double manner, desuckering, early deleafing, green harvesting, and traditional tilling of the soil. They are experimenting with biodynamic farming at Clos Fourtet. If that is successful, they could slowly move to biodynamic farming at Chateau Poujeaux as well.

The debut vintage under the new owners, the Cuvelier family was 2008. At Chateau Poujeaux, they are practicing serious vineyard management with the help of Stéphane Derenoncourt, who works with numerous Bordeaux winemakers on both banks, including the Cuvelier’s property in St. Emilion, Clos Fourtet.

To produce the wine of Chateau Poujeaux is a labor-intensive process. The fruit is whole berry fermented in a combination of small stainless steel vats, oak barrels, and cement tanks with a 25-day cuvaison. Chateau Poujeaux is aged in about 40% new, French oak barrels for an average of 12 months.

There is a second wine, La Salle de Poujeaux, which was previously known as Moulin de Poujeaux. The estate also produces a third wine, Haut de Poujeaux, which comes from vines planted in the Haut Medoc appellation. On average, Chateau Poujeaux produces close to 25,000 cases per year of Bordeaux wine.

The wine of Chateau Poujeaux since Mathieu Cuvelier took over the estate continues to get better and better. This is an outstanding value Bordeaux wine that drinks well young, ages, and has true, Bordeaux character. In fact, Chateau Poujeaux is one of the best Bordeaux value wines from the Left Bank. It is also the finest wine being produced from the Moulis appellation today.

When to Drink Chateau Poujeaux, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time

Chateau Poujeaux 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 Poujeaux is usually better with at least 4-7 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. Chateau Poujeaux offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 5-20 years of age after the vintage.

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

Chateau Poujeaux is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift. The wine of Chateau Poujeaux is best served with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau Poujeaux is a perfect match with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta as well as cheese.

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