Château Gruaud Larose Saint-Julien 2e Cru Classé 1990

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The Gruaud-Larose estate stretches between Branaire-Ducru to the east and Lagrange to the west. Its extensive vineyard (85 hectares) lies on medium-grade gravel soil. In the 18th century, the estate, owned by the Gruaud brothers, encompassed 115 hectares. The son-in-law of one of them, Mr. de Larose, took over the estate and became a tireless ambassador for this wine, which reached the royal table, hence the famous phrase that can still be read on its label: "the king of wines, the wine of kings." A well-deserved distinction, as for many years, the wines established themselves as the most substantial and long-evolving Saint-Julien.

And yet, the history of Gruaud Larose is anything but plain sailing. After many changes of ownership during the 19th century, the estate suffered a stormy succession, from which it emerged divided in 1867. One of the owners was Baron Sarget, who gave his name to the current second wine, Sarget de Gruaud Larose. The Cordier Group, which became the owner in 1917, successfully reunited the two parcels of the old estate in 1934. Gruaud Larose was sold in 1993 to the Alcatel Alsthom company, then, in 1997, to the Merlaut family. The wines of Gruaud Larose are among the best in Saint-Julien and the estate began a conversion to biodynamics in 2017.