NETJETS US VOLUME 9 2019

STUDIO ERICK SAILLET
in-law of the Ducasse family, who owned
the vineyard, he took over the unloved
terrain in 1852, draining and renovating the
land and adding the château building that
still stands today.
Now one of only four châteaux at the
Saint-Émilion Premier Grand Cru Classé
“A” level in the local appellation system,
the Cheval Blanc we savor today is down to
the work of the LVMH chairman Bernard
Arnault and the late Belgian billionaire
Albert Frère, who together acquired the
vineyard in the late 1990s.
Architect Christian de Portzamparc
designed a new cellar, and 2011 saw the
first vintage made in it, equipped with 52
concrete vats to ferment every single plot of
the estate.
When it comes to future plans, however,
Clouet insists that the relentless march of
progress isn’t a beat that suits this part of
Bordeaux. “There is no big project or change
that would make Cheval Blanc something
that will be completely different tomorrow,”
he says. “Our work is a work of preservation,
continuity, and improvement in a framework
that is always the same.”
The modern world may have made a small
mark on the ancient estate, as Clouet admits
in relation to the cellar, but he insists the
pleasure of a glass of Cheval Blanc is all but
timeless. “There are 1,000 ways to enjoy it,”
he laughs. “For me, the best way to see Cheval
Blanc is to be at the heart of the estate, at
the end of the summer, in September when
the grapes are ripe, with all the vineyards
around you and to drink a Cheval Blanc glass
at Cheval Blanc – there is no better place.”
And it is from this noble terroir where many
more significant vintages, perhaps even those
to eclipse the ’47, are sure to be produced.
chateau-cheval-blanc.com
Christian de
Portzamparc’s modern
design for the Cheval
Blanc winery
Bordeaux Airport: 32miles/52km
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