Chateau Marquis d’Alesme Margaux Bordeaux, Complete Guide

Learn everything about Chateau Marquis d’Alesme Becker Margaux Third Growth with wine tasting notes and wine with food pairing tips. Learn the best vintages, a 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 Marquis d’Alesme, History, Overview

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme can trace its roots all the way back to 1585. 31 years after the estate was created, they began planting vines and cultivating their vineyard. The name of the property, Marquis d’Alesme, comes from one of the early aristocratic families that previously owned the estate.

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme changed hands during the French revolution. In 1809. the Medoc chateau was sold to a Dutch wine merchant, Jean Bekker Terrlink, who changed the name of the property to include his middle name, and Chateau Marquis d’Alesme Becker was born.

Comte Jean-Jules Theophile Chaix-d’Est-Ange bought Chateau Marquis d’Alesme Becker in the early 18th century. At the time, he was already the owner of Chateau Lascombes, which he obtained from his father. He wanted to combine both Margaux vineyards to create one large Medoc property.

He passed away in 1923 before he was able to create the single vineyard. The original Marquis d’Alesme chateau became the office for Chateau Lascombes, with the chateau of Desmirail taking its place.

A succession of owners followed until 1938 when the property was sold to Edmond Ritz from the Alsace region. His grandson, Jean Claude Zuger inherited the estate. If the Zuger name sounds familiar, it is because they are the owners of another Margaux property, Chateau Malescot St. Exupery.

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme The Modern Age

In 2006, Chateau Marquis d’Alesme Becker was sold by the Zuger family to the Perrodo family for 25 Million Euros. This was a logical estate to buy for the new owner, Hubert Perrodo, as he already owned another Margaux vineyard, Chateau Labegorce, which he obtained in 1989.

Sadly, Hubert Perrodo was killed in a skiing accident shortly after buying the property. The estate is currently managed by the daughter, Nathalie Perrodo.

Chateau Marquis d’Aleseme underwent a massive renovation to the estate that was completed in time for the 2015 harvest. The design, created by the architect Fabien Pedelaborde,(who recently finished a renovation and redesign at Chateau Soutard in St. Emilion) is a blending of Asian and classic French influences that came from the owner, Nathalie Perrodo, who is half Chinese and half French.

The exteriors of the building retained the classic French stylings of the chateau. Inside, however, the design showcased distinctive influences from China. Above the fermentation vats, a large, bronze dragon with 22,000 scales has been designed to hang from the wood ceilings with patterns that take into account water, earth and heaven impressed into the cement.

It is really a unique design to Bordeaux and is well worth the visit. One other important change came about under the direction of Nathalie Perrodo. The estate now uses the shorter version of the wineries name, Chateau Marquis d’Alesme. They dropped the word Becker, helping to make the wine easier to market.

Here’s a hot tip for you. The new renovations include the addition of Le Hameau, a cool, wine bar that also serves snacks. It’s a great, secret spot in the Margaux appellation to visit when you need a break.

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Winemaking

The 14 hectare Left Bank vineyard of Chateau Marquis d’Alesme is divided into 3 unique terroirs and soils. They have a section of the vineyard with silica and gravel soils situated close to the D2 road is planted to 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot, and 5% Cabernet Franc.

This shows a marked increase in the amount of Cabernet Sauvignon and new plantings of Cabernet Franc. There is a parcel located next to the chateau that consists of silica and gravel soil and some clay in the terroir that is planted to 100% Merlot.

The third section of the vineyard is mostly young vines, which is the source for their second wine, Marquise d’Alesme.

On average, the vines are kept at 40 years of age. The plantings are at a vine density of 10,000 vines per hectare. Today, Chateau Marquis d’Alesme focuses on utilizing, self-sustaining, vineyard management techniques. Starting with the 2016 vintage, only organic farming methods have been used in their vineyards.

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme Winemaking

To produce the wine of Chateau Marquis d’Alesme, vinification takes place in a combination of temperature-controlled, traditional oak vats and cement tanks that are 80 hectoliters in size. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrels.

The wine of Chateau Marquis d’Alesme is aged in 40% new, French oak barrels for an average of 18 months. For the first three months of the aging process, the wine is aged on its fine lees.

There is a second wine, Marquise d’Alesme, which was created in 1988. On average, the annual production of Chateau Marquis d’Alesme is close to 7,000 cases per year.

In 2022, the estate began producing Saam Long, a white Bordeaux wine from grapes planted in one of their cooler terroirs. The name means 3 dragons, which comes from the trinity of 3s, 3 Margaux vineyards, 3 children and the 3 grape varieties in the wine. The wine is an interesting blend of 33% Chardonnay, 33% Petit Manseng, and 33% Albarino planted 1.5 hectares in deep clay soils. The wine will be sold as a Vin de France. Not much is made, as the production hovers at close to 300 cases of wine per vintage.

The best vintages of Chateau Marquis d’Alesme are: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012 and 2010.

Prior to 2010, the wines from Chateau Marquis d’Alesme were not that exciting. But things turned around for the estate with the 2010 Bordeaux vintage. With a spare no expense attitude, which included building a new fermentation cellar equipped with a combination of state-of-the-art stainless steel vats, and new French oak tanks.

The selection process both in the vineyards and cellars is also much more severe. The estate has also hired Michel Rolland as their consultant. All of this adds up to the fact that this is now a Margaux property to watch that offers quality wine, with character for a fair price, especially from a Classified Growth.

When to Drink Chateau Marquis d’Alesme, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme can be enjoyed young with decanting. Young vintages can be decanted for an average of 1-3 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 Marquis d’Alesme is usually better with at least 7-9 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. Chateau Marquis d’Alesme offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 10-20 years of age after the vintage.

Serving Chateau Marquis d’Alesme, with Wine, Food, Pairing Tips

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme is best served with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau Marquis d’Alesme is a perfect match with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta as well as a wide variety of hard and soft cheeses.

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