Château La Mondotte

La Mondotte dates from the 19th century. Stephan von Neipperg's father bought Canon-la-Gaffelière in 1971 and bought La Mondotte the same year. Before 1996 the wine was called Château La Mondotte. Stephan von Neipperg wanted to incorporate the 4.5-hectare property into Canon-la-Gaffelière, but permission was denied: La Mondotte was a grand cru, while Canon-la-Gaffelière's status was more prestigious, and the two could not cohabit. Persuaded of the quality of its fruit, he decided instead to lavish care and attention on the property. In 1996 he kept yields low and picked late, the word 'château' was dropped from the label, and the reborn La Mondotte was created. The estate's notes on that first vintage record a 100% Merlot, picked on 7 and 8 October 1996 at 21 hl/ha and aged for 24 months in new oak barrels on the lees, with no fining or filtering. In 2012 La Mondotte was classified for the first time, as a Premier Grand Cru Classé B. It is one of the estates of Vignobles Comtes von Neipperg in Saint-Émilion.

• 19th century: the estate's origins.
• 1971: bought by Stephan von Neipperg's father, the same year as Canon-la-Gaffelière.
• 1996: after permission to incorporate it into Canon-la-Gaffelière was denied, relaunched as La Mondotte with a 100% Merlot first vintage.
• 2012: first classification, as Premier Grand Cru Classé B.
• 2014: first vintage certified organic.

Stephan von Neipperg manages the Bordeaux estates his family acquired in 1971. He agreed to manage the family's Saint-Émilion properties in 1985, the year he took over Canon-la-Gaffelière, and he and his wife, Sigweis, have lived in Saint-Émilion since 1983. In 1996 he hired Stéphane Derenoncourt as winemaker for the Neipperg wines; Derenoncourt's role later became that of a consultant rather than resident winemaker.

• Stephan von Neipperg: manages the family's Bordeaux estates; in charge of the Saint-Émilion properties since 1985.
• Stéphane Derenoncourt: hired as winemaker in 1996; later a consultant rather than resident winemaker.

La Mondotte's 4.5 hectares (9.9 acres) of vines grow on the clay-limestone plateau east of Saint-Émilion, in a few parcels near Pavie-Decesse and Troplong-Mondot. The terroir is very silty clay over a rocky subsoil. This shallow, meagre soil regulates water well and favours deep rooting, and natural drainage combined with outstanding sunshine brings early and complete ripening. The vineyard is planted to 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc, and the vines average 60 years of age. Since the 1990s the oldest vines in the von Neipperg vineyards have been propagated by mass selection, to preserve a high-quality genetic heritage and guarantee independence when replanting.

• 4.5 ha (9.9 acres) on the clay-limestone plateau east of Saint-Émilion, near Pavie-Decesse and Troplong-Mondot.
• Very silty clay over a rocky subsoil.
• 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc; average vine age 60 years.
• Oldest vines propagated by mass selection since the 1990s.

The ecological commitment of the von Neipperg estates dates from 1988; green cover, composting and the planting of hedges are used to protect the ecosystem. In 2000 the viticulture at La Mondotte became entirely biodynamic. La Mondotte and Canon-la-Gaffelière were certified organic in 2014, and 2014 was La Mondotte's first certified vintage; as of 2016 they were the only Premier Grand Cru Classé wines in Saint-Émilion with organic certification. Grapes are picked by hand into small crates, sorted before and after destemming, and not crushed. Fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled wooden vats for 28 to 35 days depending on the vintage, with extraction by pneumatic pigeage (punching down the cap), which the von Neipperg estates adopted in 1997; across the estates, alcoholic fermentation never exceeds 30°C. Malolactic fermentation and ageing take place in barrel on the fine lees, with fining and filtering as necessary depending on the vintage, and barrel ageing lasts 18 months on average. The estate's La Mondotte page gives new oak barrels (100%), while recent vintage notes record a lower share of new oak: 60% in 2020 and 40% in 2022, and in 2023 the wine was aged 75% in oak barrels (40% new) and 25% in wooden and concrete vats for 16 months, with no fining. Yields vary widely with the vintage: 8 hl/ha in 2013, 18 hl/ha in 2014 and 37 hl/ha in 2023.

• Ecological commitment across the von Neipperg estates since 1988; entirely biodynamic viticulture from 2000.
• Certified organic since 2014 (FR-BIO-10).
• Hand harvest into small crates; sorting before and after destemming; no crushing.
• 28 to 35 days in temperature-controlled wooden vats with pneumatic pigeage; 18 months in barrel on fine lees on average.
• Yields: 8 hl/ha (2013), 18 hl/ha (2014), 37 hl/ha (2023).

The Saint-Émilion rankings are revised every 10 years. In the 2012 classification, announced by the INAO on 6 September 2012, La Mondotte, Canon-la-Gaffelière, Larcis-Ducasse and Valandraud were elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé B, and it was the first time La Mondotte and Valandraud had been classified. Stephan von Neipperg told Wine Spectator at the time: 'They have a lot of courage to classify a winery Premier Grand Cru Classé that has never been classified.' On 8 September 2022 the INAO's national committee approved the next classification, with 14 premiers grands crus classés, two of them with the distinction A, and 71 grands crus classés. La Mondotte is on the 2022 list of premiers grands crus classés, without the distinction A, which went to Château Figeac and Château Pavie.

• 6 September 2012: elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé B, its first classification.
• 8 September 2022: listed among the 14 premiers grands crus classés; the distinction A went to Château Figeac and Château Pavie.

The estate describes La Mondotte as silky, powerful, incomparably elegant and of enormous minerality, a wine profoundly marked by its terroir, and names power and minerality as its bywords. Writing in Decanter, Stephen Brook called the reborn La Mondotte a critical triumph that rapidly became one of St-Emilion's priciest, and best, wines. Stephan von Neipperg told him that the wine differs from Canon-la-Gaffelière because the soil is different, adding: 'Writers sometimes call La Mondotte a vin de garage. But it really isn’t. It’s a wine from a specific and magnificent terroir.'

Primary sources (Vignobles Comtes von Neipperg, the estate's group site): https://www.neipperg.com/en/discover/la-mondotte.html, https://www.neipperg.com/en/a-precious-heritage.html, https://www.neipperg.com/en/winemaking/respect-for-the-vines.html, https://www.neipperg.com/en/winemaking/understanding-the-terroir.html, https://www.neipperg.com/en/winemaking/winemaking-philosophy.html. Official sources: INAO, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru classification approved 8 September 2022 (https://www.inao.gouv.fr/en/saint-emilion-grand-cru-classement-next-decade); Conseil des Vins de Saint-Émilion, La Mondotte listing (https://vins-saint-emilion.com/en/castle/la-mondotte-2/). Secondary sources: Wine Spectator (Suzanne Mustacich, 7 September 2012, https://www.winespectator.com/articles/st-emilion-issues-a-surprising-new-classification-47276; James Molesworth, 15 June 2016 issue, https://top100.winespectator.com/2018/article/going-green-in-bordeaux/) and Decanter (Stephen Brook, last updated 30 May 2020, https://www.decanter.com/features/stephan-von-neipperg-to-the-manor-born-247585/). Last verified 2026-10-21. Where the producer's site and a secondary source disagree, the producer's site governs.