Château Peybonhomme Les Tours Rouge 2023

Château Peybonhomme Les Tours is a historic family estate in Cars, just outside Blaye, overlooking the Gironde estuary. The Hubert family has owned the property since the late 19th century, with six generations now connected to the estate. Today Rachel and Guillaume Hubert are closely involved in the domaine, continuing a shift toward lower intervention winemaking while preserving the traditional Bordeaux varieties and clay limestone terroir of Blaye.

The vineyards are certified organic and biodynamic, with Demeter certification dating to 2000. Farming includes spontaneous winter ground cover, spring soil cultivation and very limited copper treatments supplemented with herbal preparations such as horsetail and nettle. The estate’s hillside vineyards are predominantly clay limestone, a combination that gives the wines freshness and a distinctly mineral, savory character despite the relatively warm Right Bank location.

The 2023 Rouge, the estate’s principal cuvée, is 70% merlot, 20% cabernet franc and 10% malbec. Fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts in temperature controlled concrete vats, with sulfur kept low and no other additions. Élevage remains in tank rather than oak, preserving the fruit and keeping the wine supple and immediate. It is bottled without fining, with an emphasis on capturing freshness rather than producing a heavily extracted Bordeaux style.

The wine shows wild strawberry, cassis and dark plum with violet, gentle spice and earthy notes. The palate is medium bodied and fresh, with juicy fruit, moderate tannins and a savory mineral edge. The finish is clean and lively, making this a particularly approachable, less polished and more energetic expression of Blaye Bordeaux.