Château Brane Cantenac 2ème Grand Cru Classé 1981

Lot presentation

Château Brane Cantenac 2ème Grand Cru Classé 1981

The wine

Brane Cantenac’s grand vin is mainly composed of Cabernet-Sauvignon (about 60%) completed by Merlot, Cabernet Franc and in more recent vintages a hint of Carmenère and Petit Verdot. The wine is vinified in wooden vats and aged for 18 months in new French oak barriques. Every stage, from harvests to ageing, is carried out with exceptional care and supported by state-of-the-art technology such as optical sorting and the R’Pulse system. The wine is tasted regularly throughout the process to fine-tune each step of vinification, all executed with remarkable precision.
In the glass, it reveals a generous bouquet that evolves from blackberry and violet to truffle with age. On the palate, it shows the hallmark Margaux tannin profile, silky, poised and refined. Never the most demonstrative of crus, it is nevertheless a superb wine that ages gracefully. Recent vintages are of outstanding quality.

The château was ranked a Deuxième Grand Cru in 1855, a distinction that firmly established Brane-Cantenac among Bordeaux’s leading wines. It is renowned for its remarkable ageing potential and consistent quality.
The Lurton family bought this prestigious property in 1925, and with the passing generations has maintained the delicate, complex, aromatic style for which Brane-Cantenac is known. Now under the direction of Henri Lurton, the property continues to pursue an exacting vision rooted in meticulous plot-by-plot management and a deep understanding of its soils. Harvesting is conducted with precision, and vinification is carefully controlled, supported by modern technologies (optical sorting and R’Pulse system), while ageing is carried out with equal care in French oak barrels. A thorough study of the gravel soils led to reshaping the vineyard, identifying distinct sectors aligned with the ancient terraces formed over thousands of years. This precise mapping allows vineyard practices and vinification to be tailored to each soil type, clearly revealing the different expressions of the Margaux terroir. Each parcel is vinified separately to express its singular character with the greatest accuracy.