Château de Malle

The de Malle family's presence in the region can be traced as far back as the 14th century, and the first suggestion of a vineyard and active winemaking on the estate dates from the 15th century. Jacques de Malle (1590-1654), a descendant of a prominent Preignac family and président of the Bordeaux parliament, built the château in 1650. The property was once owned by the Lur-Saluces family. The 1855 classification placed Château de Malle as a second growth among the classified sweet white wines of Sauternes and Barsac. In 1956 a devastating frost struck, and the vineyard was reduced in size and entirely replanted; Pierre de Bournazel was responsible for the restructuring. Nancy de Bournazel took the reins of the estate in 1985. The family of the comtes de Bournazel put the estate on the market many years before its sale, and in April 2024 Luc and Clémence Planty announced their acquisition of Château de Malle.

• 1650: château built by Jacques de Malle, président of the Bordeaux parliament.
• 1855: classified a second growth among the Sauternes and Barsac classified growths.
• 1956: after a devastating frost the vineyard was reduced in size and entirely replanted, under Pierre de Bournazel.
• April 2024: acquisition by Luc and Clémence Planty from the family of the comtes de Bournazel announced.

As of the April 2024 acquisition announcement, the owners are Luc Planty, the former director of neighbouring Château Guiraud, and his wife Clémence Planty, who accompanies him in the project and was to concentrate principally on the promotion of de Malle's history, culture and tourism. Under the previous ownership, Nancy de Bournazel took the reins of the estate in 1985.

• Owners (as of the April 2024 announcement): Luc and Clémence Planty.
• Luc Planty: former director of Château Guiraud.
• Clémence Planty: to concentrate principally on the promotion of the estate's history, culture and tourism (as announced in April 2024).

The château is a 17th-century building and a registered historic monument. It comprises a central grand maison with a mansard roof, flanked by two pavilions, each one ending in a broad, round tower. The residence stands in front of six hectares of Florentine-inspired gardens, decorated with statues symbolising work in the vineyard, mythological figures and characters from the commedia dell'arte. The property lies in the northern part of the Sauternes appellation, between the autoroute on one side and the railway on the other.

• Central grand maison with a mansard roof, flanked by two pavilions ending in round towers.
• Six hectares of Florentine-inspired gardens with statues of vineyard work, mythological figures and commedia dell'arte characters.

In Winedoctor's profile, written after Luc Planty's arrival, the vineyards extend across three communes, Toulenne, Preignac and Fargues. Only the Preignac and Fargues vines qualify for Sauternes; the Toulenne vines lie beyond the appellation's borders and qualify for the Graves appellation. The same profile gives 50 hectares of vines altogether, of which 25 hectares are within the Sauternes communes, while The Drinks Business gave a figure of 38 hectares of vines at the April 2024 announcement. Of those 25 hectares, the vines are 69% Sémillon, 28% Sauvignon Blanc and 3% Muscadelle, with an average age between 30 and 40 years, planted at a density of 6,000 vines per hectare on a mix of sand, clay and limestone. At the April 2024 announcement the vineyard needed significant work before entering back into production, and the new owners planned to move over to organic agriculture.

• Appellations (as of April 2024): Sauternes and Graves.
• Only the Preignac and Fargues vines qualify for Sauternes; the Toulenne vines qualify for Graves.

At the April 2024 acquisition announcement, Luc Planty planned to produce three wines as before: Château de Malle, the Sauternes grand cru classé; Château de Cardaillan, a red Graves; and M. de Malle, a dry white Graves.

• Château de Malle: Sauternes, second growth in 1855.
• Château de Cardaillan: red Graves.
• M. de Malle: dry white Graves.

Decanter called the 2005 'one of the most consistent performers among the 2eme crus since 1990.' For Decanter, Jeannie Cho Lee MW scored the 2012 at 88 points, and the 2015 received 91 points.

In Decanter's tasting, the 2005 showed 'well-integrated richness and fruit but only medium weight; stylish and fine.' Jeannie Cho Lee MW found the 2012 'Not a rich, generous Sauternes, but one that is filled with freshness and sweet dried mangos and apricots.'

Official source: Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux, https://www.bordeaux.com/en/classifications/classifications-1855/. No producer website was used. Secondary sources: The Drinks Business (Colin Hay, 9 April 2024), https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2024/04/luc-planty-acquires-sauternes-historic-chateau-de-malle/; wein.plus (10 April 2024), https://magazine.wein.plus/news/former-director-of-chateau-guiraud-buys-chateau-de-malle-historic-sauternes-castle-is-being-revitalised; Winedoctor, https://www.thewinedoctor.com/bordeaux/malle.shtml, https://www.thewinedoctor.com/bordeaux/malle_2.shtml, https://www.thewinedoctor.com/bordeaux/malle_3.shtml; Decanter, https://www.decanter.com/wine-travel/chateau-de-malle-67863/, https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/chateau-de-malle-in-sauternes-for-sale-67346, https://www.decanter.com/wine-reviews/france/bordeaux/chateau-de-malle-bordeaux-france-2012-3832, https://decanter.com/wine-reviews/france/bordeaux/chateau-de-malle-bordeaux-france-2015-3019. Last verified 2026-10-14.