Clos La Madeleine St. Emilion Bordeaux, Complete Guide

Learn everything about Clos La Madeleine St. Emilion with wine-tasting notes and wine-with-food pairing tips. Learn the best vintages, the 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

Clos La Madeleine History, Overview

Clos La Madeleine is a small Bordeaux vineyard located just outside the St. Emilion village on the La Magdeleine, limestone plateau. When the estate was first created, their Saint Emilion wines were sold under the name of La Magdeleine. Eventually, the owners changed its name to reflect the name of the lieu-dit where the vines were planted, La Madeleine.

Clos La Madeleine was resold in 1911 to the Gachassin-Lafite family who coincidentally was also Belgian wine merchants, like the previous owners. The Gachassin-Lafite family, Charles Pistouley and Jacques Cassat formed a company to manage the estate in 1928. In time, the others sold their shares to Charles Pistouley.

His heirs sold Clos La Madeleine in 1992 to an investment group, the SOGEFI company. The new owners also obtained additional vines when they purchased the vineyards of Magnan La Gaffeliere and La Tondonne.

Extensive improvements were made at Chateau Clos La Madeleine by the new owners which included building a new vat house and barrel aging cellars. The cellars were constructed in their deep, limestone quarries.

In July 2017, Clos La Madeleine was sold to Ets. Moueix, the owners of the neighboring vineyard, Chateau Belair-Monange. While the fate of the estate is not known today, it is unknown if Clos La Madeleine will continue as a unique vineyard, or merge with Belair-Monange.

Chateau Magnan la Gaffeliere, which has 10.5 hectares of vines in Saint Emilion planted to 75% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon was also sold to Ets. Moueix in the same transaction.

Clos La Madeleine Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Winemaking

The small, 2.5-hectare vineyard of Clos La Madeleine is planted to 76% Merlot and 34% Cabernet Franc. Although you should expect to see that proportion change over the years with the new change in ownership.

The vineyard is situated next to Belair-Monange and the vineyards of what used to be Chateau Magdelaine, which all share similar, deep limestone and clay-based terroirs. The hillside terroir has a south-facing exposure.

The wine of Clos La Madeleine is fermented in small stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation is performed in French oak barrels. Chateau La Madeleine is aged in an average of 50% new, French oak barrels, although that can change, depending on the character of the vintage.

Starting with the 2019 vintage, just after the estate was bought by Ets. Moueix, the vineyard was uprooted and completely replanted. Since that point in time, no wines have been produced.

The best vintages of Clos La Madeleine are: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2010, 2009, 2005 and 2000.

Clos La Madeleine was consulted by Hubert de Bouard of Chateau Angelus until 2017. The production of Chateau Clos La Madeleine is small. On average it ranges from a low of 500 cases to as much as 700 cases of this St. Emilion wine per year.

When to Drink Clos La Madeleine, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time

Clos La Madeleine 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.

Clos La Madeleine is usually better with at least 4-5 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. Clos La Madeleine offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 5-17 years of age after the vintage.

Serving Clos La Madeleine with Wine and Food Pairings

Clos La Madeleine is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.

Clos La Madeleine is best paired with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Clos La Madeleine is also good when matched with Asian dishes, and rich fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta.

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