Pétrus

Pétrus's name first appears in written records in 1837. The Arnaud family owned Pétrus in 1837 and still owned it in 1878, when the estate won a gold medal at the Paris Exhibition. Madame Edmond Loubat began buying Pétrus from the Arnaud family in 1925 and owned the estate outright by the end of World War II. Jean-Pierre Moueix's business became Pétrus's sole sales agent starting in 1943 and introduced the wine to the American market in 1945. Madame Loubat died in 1961; her niece Madame Lacoste-Loubat represented the property for a period before Jean-Pierre Moueix gradually acquired the shares of both the niece and a nephew. From 1970 Christian Moueix ran winemaking at Pétrus with oenologist Jean-Claude Berrouet and viticulturist Michel Gillet. After Jean-Pierre Moueix's death in 2003, Jean-François Moueix became gérant (manager) of Pétrus, with Christian Moueix as directeur technique.

• Pétrus's name first appears in written records in 1837. The Arnaud family owned Pétrus in 1837 and still owned it in 1878, when the estate won a gold medal at the Paris Exhibition.
• Madame Edmond Loubat began buying Pétrus from the Arnaud family in 1925 and owned the estate outright by the end of World War II.
• Jean-Pierre Moueix's business became Pétrus's sole sales agent starting in 1943 and introduced the wine to the American market in 1945.
• Madame Loubat died in 1961; her niece Madame Lacoste-Loubat represented the property for a period before Jean-Pierre Moueix gradually acquired the shares of both the niece and a nephew.
• From 1970 Christian Moueix ran winemaking at Pétrus with oenologist Jean-Claude Berrouet and viticulturist Michel Gillet.
• After Jean-Pierre Moueix's death in 2003, Jean-François Moueix became gérant (manager) of Pétrus, with Christian Moueix as directeur technique.

In 1969 Pétrus grew from 7 to 11.4 hectares when a clay parcel was bought from neighboring Château Gazin; only the hectare bordering Gazin is gravelly, atypical of the rest of the vineyard. In June 1999 Christian Moueix, described by Wine Spectator as Pétrus's manager and a co-owner, purchased the neighboring 18.5-acre Château Certan-Giraud. Certan-Giraud was purchased from the Société de Domaines Giraud, a family-owned concern that had controlled the property since 1955. At the time of the 1999 purchase, Certan-Giraud was planted to about 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. Moueix said he intended to rename the Certan-Giraud estate. Moueix planned to renovate the cellar and portions of the 17-acre vineyard at the newly purchased estate.

• In 1969 Pétrus grew from 7 to 11.4 hectares when a clay parcel was bought from neighboring Château Gazin; only the hectare bordering Gazin is gravelly, atypical of the rest of the vineyard.
• In June 1999 Christian Moueix, described by Wine Spectator as Pétrus's manager and a co-owner, purchased the neighboring 18.5-acre Château Certan-Giraud. Certan-Giraud was purchased from the Société de Domaines Giraud, a family-owned concern that had controlled the property since 1955.
• At the time of the 1999 purchase, Certan-Giraud was planted to about 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc.
• Moueix said he intended to rename the Certan-Giraud estate. Moueix planned to renovate the cellar and portions of the 17-acre vineyard at the newly purchased estate.

Pétrus sits on the high terrace of the Pomerol plateau, on a roughly 20-hectare clay 'island' or 'buttonhole'; nearly 11 hectares of that clay lie within the Pétrus property. Beneath the clay lies a hard, iron-rich subsoil layer known as crasse de fer.

• Pétrus sits on the high terrace of the Pomerol plateau, on a roughly 20-hectare clay 'island' or 'buttonhole'; nearly 11 hectares of that clay lie within the Pétrus property.
• Beneath the clay lies a hard, iron-rich subsoil layer known as crasse de fer.

Under Madame Loubat the vineyard carried up to 20% Cabernet Franc, compared with about 5% as of Decanter's May 2020-updated feature. The Moueix regime raised the Merlot share to about 95% because the cooler clay soil favors Merlot. Complantation (replacing individual vines) is practiced on vines up to 20 years old, keeping the average vine age around 40-45 years. Christian Moueix prefers to replant an entire block once it reaches 50% gaps rather than continuing complantation. The 1956 frost devastated the vineyard, leaving effectively one barrel of production. Madame Loubat chose not to replant after the 1956 frost but had the surviving vines regrafted onto their existing root. Christian Moueix was one of the first to practice crop thinning, starting as early as 1973. Harvest at Pétrus normally takes three afternoons, not necessarily consecutive, timed to avoid morning dew. As of a 2014 Wine Spectator profile, Pétrus totaled about 28 acres of vines, predominantly Merlot. A small Cabernet Franc lot planted in 1957 on less-than-ideal soil was pulled out as the first step of a replanting program. Winemaker Olivier Berrouet said in 2014 that most of the estate's vines were about 60 years old. The most recent replantings as of 2014 were done in 1995 and 2005, with fruit from those vines already going into the grand vin.

• Under Madame Loubat the vineyard carried up to 20% Cabernet Franc, compared with about 5% as of Decanter's May 2020-updated feature. The Moueix regime raised the Merlot share to about 95% because the cooler clay soil favors Merlot.
• Complantation (replacing individual vines) is practiced on vines up to 20 years old, keeping the average vine age around 40-45 years. Christian Moueix prefers to replant an entire block once it reaches 50% gaps rather than continuing complantation.
• The 1956 frost devastated the vineyard, leaving effectively one barrel of production. Madame Loubat chose not to replant after the 1956 frost but had the surviving vines regrafted onto their existing root.
• Christian Moueix was one of the first to practice crop thinning, starting as early as 1973.
• Harvest at Pétrus normally takes three afternoons, not necessarily consecutive, timed to avoid morning dew.
• As of a 2014 Wine Spectator profile, Pétrus totaled about 28 acres of vines, predominantly Merlot. A small Cabernet Franc lot planted in 1957 on less-than-ideal soil was pulled out as the first step of a replanting program.
• Winemaker Olivier Berrouet said in 2014 that most of the estate's vines were about 60 years old. The most recent replantings as of 2014 were done in 1995 and 2005, with fruit from those vines already going into the grand vin.

Fermentation takes place in concrete vats with skin maceration lasting 18 to 25 days. Fermentation temperatures normally rise from about 17-19C to 32C, though in 2003 the ceiling was held to 29C. Malolactic fermentation also takes place in concrete. The wine is aged in barrels from Demptos, Seguin-Moreau and Taransaud, normally 100% new oak, except in lighter vintages such as 1997 when some 1995 barrels were used. Pétrus uses vertical presses, considered gentler than horizontal presses, which the estate says 'lacerate.' Two sorting tables lengthen the harvest sorting process from 10-12 hours to about 20; there was no sorting at all in 1998. The sorting table was purchased in 2002 due to irregular ripeness from a difficult flowering, and was used again in 2003 to remove burnt berries. In 2012 a new cellar was built with small concrete vats for more exacting parcel vinification.

• Fermentation takes place in concrete vats with skin maceration lasting 18 to 25 days. Fermentation temperatures normally rise from about 17-19C to 32C, though in 2003 the ceiling was held to 29C.
• Malolactic fermentation also takes place in concrete.
• The wine is aged in barrels from Demptos, Seguin-Moreau and Taransaud, normally 100% new oak, except in lighter vintages such as 1997 when some 1995 barrels were used.
• Pétrus uses vertical presses, considered gentler than horizontal presses, which the estate says 'lacerate.'
• Two sorting tables lengthen the harvest sorting process from 10-12 hours to about 20; there was no sorting at all in 1998. The sorting table was purchased in 2002 due to irregular ripeness from a difficult flowering, and was used again in 2003 to remove burnt berries.
• In 2012 a new cellar was built with small concrete vats for more exacting parcel vinification.

Jean-Claude Berrouet made the wine at Pétrus from 1964 until his son Olivier Berrouet succeeded him as winemaker in 2008. Olivier Berrouet called the 2011 vintage 'fragile.' Discussing the difficult 2013 vintage, Berrouet said: 'You just have to admit that you can't make great wines from grapes that aren't great.'

• Jean-Claude Berrouet made the wine at Pétrus from 1964 until his son Olivier Berrouet succeeded him as winemaker in 2008.
• Olivier Berrouet called the 2011 vintage 'fragile.'
• Discussing the difficult 2013 vintage, Berrouet said: 'You just have to admit that you can't make great wines from grapes that aren't great.'

Primary source: petrus.com was checked directly but returns a JavaScript-rendered single-page application (Next.js) with no server-rendered estate content; its only routes are a contact form, a bottle-authentication tool, and terms of sale, so no history, ownership, vineyard, or wine content could be retrieved (PRIMARY-UNREACHED; this article proceeds thin from secondary sources per Accuracy SOP v2.3). Secondary sources: Decanter, "Pétrus wine: Behind the Legend" by Serena Sutcliffe MW (last updated 25 May 2020); Wine Spectator, "Petrus Owner Buys Neighboring Estate in Pomerol" by Kim Marcus (June 18, 1999); Wine Spectator, "At Pétrus, the Kid Gets the Picture" by James Molesworth (August 18, 2014). Last verified 2026-09-13.