Château Ripeau, Grand Cru Classé since the creation of the classification in 1954, produces this Saint-Émilion from 15 hectares of sandy and slightly stony soil with a clay-iron presence in the subsoil . This poor and well-drained terroir is ideal for the 3 grape varieties present here, namely 65% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon.
The grapes, picked by hand in small crates, give moderate yields, between 30 and 35 hectoliters per hectare. In the cellar, the harvest is sorted twice before cold maceration and thermoregulated and plot-based vinification . As for the aging, it lasts more than 12 months in oak barrels which are 1/3 new.
This is how a rich, complex and powerful Grand Cru is born, with present tannins and a nose of fruit, sweet spices and the woody notes of its aging. The 2008, ample and rustic, caught the attention of Bernard Burtschy.