Petit Figeac 2017

Lot presentation

Petit Figeac 2017

The wine

In 2002, the Manoncourt family bought a 1.5-hectare plot from Axa Millésimes which was part of the historic Figeac vineyard in the 19th century. At the time of this acquisition, the wine produced was then marketed as "Château Petit Figeac". From 2012, Petit Figeac officially became Château Figeac's second wine. It benefits from all the care and attention given to the domain’s great wine: manual harvesting, vinification and élevage in oak barrels (20% new) for 16 months. This wine is also subject to selection, the remaining juices being handed over to the wine traders. Supple, dense, deep and elegant with its coated tannins, it can be enjoyed up to 15 years after the vintage.

The property's history is linked to another Premier Grand Cru Classé: in the 1830s, a choice 30-hectare plot from Figeac's vineyard was sold and 20 years later became the illustrious Cheval Blanc. Of all Saint Emilion's wines, Château Figeac is considered to be the one most in the Médoc style. The reason is that, unlike most of the appellation's other Premier Grand Crus Classés, which are situated on clay-limestone soil, Château Figeac benefits from gravelly soil, with flint and quartz and a blue clay subsoil in places, across 54 hectares of plots. This geological configuration, so unusual for Saint Emilion, gives Figeac an exceptional elegance. Another distinction is that while the appellation as a whole is planted mainly with Merlot, Figeac’s plantings give pride of place to Cabernet (30% Cabernet Franc, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon) with Merlot making up 35%. However, these particularities are not the only reason for the property's success; man has without doubt played a role: from 1943, Thierry Manoncourt, an agricultural engineer (who died in 2010), managed the property in a masterful fashion. Having chosen a scientific approach to viticulture, he introduced the stainless steel vat, along with numerous other technical procedures that were later followed by his peers. From the 1990s, Thierry Manoncourt left the operational management of the property to his daughter Laure and son-in-law Eric d'Aramon, but maintained a strong presence until his death in 2010. On 24 hectares, the vineyard soils are worked by horse. The grapes, brought to the winery under a protective layer of dry ice, are sorted with great precision (optical sorting), and no sulphur is added when the harvest arrives. A cold pre-fermentation at 8°C and an inoculation of non-Saccharomyces yeasts take hold of the must before alcoholic fermentation begins. The grand vin is aged in new barrels for 15 to 20 months. No fining has been carried out since 2021. Since 2012, Château Figeac has started a new chapter. Jean-Valmy Nicolas is co-manager. Frédéric Faye, working for Figeac since 2002, became director of the château in 2013 and is supported by technical director Romain Jean-Pierre, vineyard manager Christophe Lafon, and cellar master Jean Albino. Château Figeac has been classified Premier Grand Cru Classé A since 2022.