Château Angélus

“Château Angélus”: according to the oral tradition of the vineyard, the origin of this name is not only due to the monastic history of Saint-Emilion, but also to the privileged location of the estate. In the past, it was the only place where you could hear the Angelus being rung simultaneously by the three local churches: the chapel of Mazerat, the church of Saint-Martin-de-Mazerat and the church of Saint-Emilion. This is how the place came to be known as l’Angélus. But at the time, it was just a 3-hectare plot of land. The current estate was created by the Boüard de Laforest family, who had owned property in Saint-Emilion since 1782. In 1909, at the age of 39, Maurice de Boüard de Laforest settled in Saint-Emilion after inheriting a 13-hectare vineyard, Château Mazerat, from his aunt Souffrain de Lavergne.
In the 1920s, he bought the 3-hectare enclosure adjoining Mazerat, known as l’Angélus. After the war, his three sons, Alain, Jacques and Christian, decided to combine the production from Mazerat and the small enclosure under the name Château l’Angélus. It was under this name that the vineyard was classified in 1954. Maurice de Boüard de Laforest died in 1959 at the age of 89. The youngest of the three sons, Alain, left the family business in 1960, and Jacques and Christian de Boüard de Laforest took over the destiny of Château l’Angélus. In 1969, they added 3 hectares of neighbouring land purchased from Château Beauséjour.
Today, Hubert de Boüard de Laforest and his cousin Jean-Bernard Grenié – the seventh generation – share the responsibilities of the château: Hubert de Boüard puts his training as an oenologist at the service of the vineyard and represents it throughout the world, while Jean-Bernard Grenié manages and administers the estate. Heirs to the privileges of Angélus and to a constant concern for perfection, their ambition is to maintain Château Angélus at the highest level of the Premiers Grands Crus Classés of Saint-Emilion.