Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

The vineyard was founded in 1689 by Pierre de Rauzan. His daughter Thérèse received the estate as a dowry when she married Jacques de Pichon Longueville, giving the property its name. Baron Joseph de Pichon Longueville, over 70 years, built the estate into a 50-hectare property. On his death in 1850 it was divided among his five children: his daughter Virginie, who had married the Comte de Lalande, and her sisters inherited 30 hectares, and Virginie built the château that bears her name. In 1855 the estate was ranked a Second Classified Growth in the imperial classification commissioned by Napoleon III for the Paris Universal Exhibition. The Miailhe family began a new era in 1925; May-Eliane de Lencquesaing, daughter of Edouard Miailhe, became owner and general manager in 1978 and expanded the vineyard from 40 to its now-classic 89 hectares before selling the estate to Champagne Louis Roederer, a family company managed by Frédéric Rouzaud, in January 2007. "The third family in three centuries now presides over the destiny of Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande," the estate states, "with the aim of perpetuating the excellence of this great Pauillac wine."

• Founded 1689 by Pierre de Rauzan; name established through Thérèse's 1694 marriage to Jacques de Pichon Longueville
• 1850: estate divided on Baron Joseph de Pichon Longueville's death; Virginie, Comtesse de Lalande, and her sisters took 30 hectares
• 1855: ranked a Second Classified Growth in Napoleon III's imperial classification
• 1925: Miailhe family era begins; 1978: May-Eliane de Lencquesaing becomes owner and general manager; 2007: sold to Champagne Louis Roederer (Frédéric Rouzaud)

May-Eliane de Lencquesaing's greatest achievement was expanding Pichon Comtesse from 40 hectares to its current 89 hectares of vines, growing the estate by more than half over her nearly three decades at the helm. She sold the estate to the owners of Roederer Champagne in January 2007. Frédéric Rouzaud, Owner and CEO of Champagne Louis Roederer, describes the wine as "a precious stone that we keep on sculpting to perfection, and to give the people who love these wines an experience that will leave them starry-eyed with a genuine physical sensation". With the new ownership, Sylvie Cazes was named director in February 2011, and Nicolas Glumineau, who had spent five years at Château Montrose after earlier posts at Haut-Brion and Margaux, replaced her in 2012. Glumineau, now titled General Manager and Winemaker, has led the estate since. "Pichon Comtesse has always had this distinctive character: a wine in the Pauillac appellation with a unique, expressive character", he says.

• May-Eliane de Lencquesaing: owner and general manager 1978 to 2007; expanded the vineyard from 40 to 89 hectares
• Sold the estate to the owners of Roederer Champagne in January 2007
• Sylvie Cazes named director February 2011; replaced in 2012 by Nicolas Glumineau, previously five years at Château Montrose and earlier at Haut-Brion and Margaux
• Nicolas Glumineau is now titled General Manager and Winemaker

Pichon Comtesse has 102 hectares under vine in the southern part of the Pauillac appellation, a stone's throw from the Gironde Estuary, comprising over 100 vineyard plots. The Médoc's gravel rises over clay subsoil, formed by the slow drop in water levels during the Quaternary period, give the wines their character. The estate plants Cabernet Sauvignon, which makes up 70% of its area under vine, alongside Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Unusually for a classified growth, 11 hectares of the vineyard lie in the neighboring Saint-Julien commune; historically some of this wine was labelled AOC Saint-Julien and some AOC Pauillac before the owner won the right in the 1960s to call all of it Pauillac. "In April 2017, while the Bordeaux vineyards witnessed a major climatic incident marked by sub-zero temperatures, the vineyards close to the estuary were still spared from spring frosts! Once again, the river provided natural protection for the vines", said vineyard manager François Taris. The 2025 harvest ran 96 days from flowering to harvest and concluded on 23 September, with average alcohol by volume of 13.4% after fermentation.

• 102 hectares under vine in southern Pauillac, over 100 plots, near the Gironde Estuary
• Cabernet Sauvignon (70% of area under vine), Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot on gravel-over-clay soils
• 11 hectares of the vineyard lie in the Saint-Julien commune; all wine has been sold as AOC Pauillac since the 1960s
• 2025 harvest: 96 days flowering to harvest, concluded 23 September, average 13.4% ABV

The neoclassical château is, in the estate's words, "the epitome of harmony and understated elegance". Its more recent reconstructions are built in stone, wood and glass. "I wanted to keep glass as the central theme at Pichon Comtesse. This shower of light bulbs has become an emblem. It is the collective work of father and son", said architect Philippe Ducos. The preserved façade of the former vat room and the entrance to a new atrium link the estate's history to its present. In 2012 the estate undertook a renovation with a budget in excess of 15 million euros, designed by Ducos and Alexandre Rougier, building a new triple-tiered gravity-flow cellar for parcel-by-parcel vinification; the work was completed in time for the 2013 harvest. On the environmental side, teams have favored biodiversity since 2010, planting trees and native hedgerows and installing beehives, work now recognized by the highest level of environmental certification, HVE4. In 2021 a conversion to organic farming was launched across the whole vineyard. "Human intervention plays a key role in terroir. No people, no wine", said Stéphanie Danglade, Oenologist and QHSE Manager.

• 2012 renovation, budget over 15 million euros, designed by Philippe Ducos and Alexandre Rougier; new triple-tiered gravity-flow cellar completed for the 2013 harvest
• Biodiversity measures (trees, native hedgerows, beehives) since 2010; highest environmental certification level, HVE4
• Conversion to organic farming launched across the whole vineyard in 2021
• Wine sold in over 80 countries worldwide through the traditional Bordeaux estate-broker-négociant trade

The Grand Vin ages an average of 18 months in 50% new French oak. The estate produces up to 15,000 cases a year on average. A second wine, Réserve de la Comtesse, made its permanent debut in 1973, after being produced occasionally as far back as 1874; Pichon Comtesse was among the first Bordeaux estates to make a true second wine, and it was renamed Pichon Comtesse Réserve starting with the 2019 vintage. Under Nicolas Glumineau, wine writer Jeff Leve of The Wine Cellar Insider has said, "starting with the 2016 vintage, Pichon Lalande has never produced better wines in the history of the estate!" He scored the 2016 vintage a perfect 100 points, writing that it offers "volume, intensity, purity of fruit, silky, polished, cashmere-tannins, and a sensuality in the seamless finish". Leve called it "a future legendary Bordeaux." The 2025 vintage, blending 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc from the estate's earliest-ever harvest start, showed "cigar wrappers, blackberries, cocoa, cassis, chocolate, black cherries, and gentle spices in the aromas", per the same critic. Leve lists dark berry fruit, truffle, cassis and cedar, with pure silk and velvet textures, as hallmarks of the style, and names 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2000, 1996, 1995, 1989, 1986, 1985, 1983, 1978 and 1982 among the estate's best vintages.

• Grand Vin: average 18 months in 50% new French oak; up to 15,000 cases produced per year on average
• Second wine Réserve de la Comtesse, permanent since 1973; renamed Pichon Comtesse Réserve from the 2019 vintage
• 2016 vintage scored a perfect 100 points by Jeff Leve of The Wine Cellar Insider, called a career-best for the estate
• Signature style per press tasting notes: dark berry fruit, truffle, cassis, cedar, silk and velvet textures

Primary sources (producer's own site): https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/civilisation/langue, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/civilisation/territoire, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/civilisation/architecture, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/civilisation/valeurs, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/civilisation/technique, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/civilisation/vin, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/millesime, https://www.pichon-comtesse.com/en/contact. Secondary sources: Decanter (Jane Anson, 8 May 2013), https://www.decanterchina.com/en/knowledge/producers/chateau-pichon-longueville-comtesse-de-lalande; The Wine Cellar Insider (Jeff Leve), https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/bordeaux-wine-producer-profiles/bordeaux/pauillac/pichon-comtesse-de-lalande/. Last verified 2026-09-13. Where the producer's site and a secondary source disagree, the producer's site governs (see conflicts.json).