Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey

A very old wine estate of 36 hectares, château Lafaurie-Peyraguey is located in the heart of the Sauternes region, on the heights of the village of Bommes. Maisons Rouges, part of the property, was a staging post for the Romans, and the oldest stones of the perimeter wall and the entrance porch, considered the oldest monument in the commune of Bommes, date from the 13th century. The stones and archives of the château (since 1742) bear witness to the rich past of château Lafaurie-Peyraguey: eight centuries of history preserved! King Alfonso XII of Spain made Peyraguey his favourite wine, buying “a barrel of Lafaurie-Peyraguey 1858 at the fabulous price of 6,000 gold francs”.
At all times, people have indeed enhanced the terroir and the wines here, as early as 1618, with the oldest owner of whom a trace is found, Monsieur Peyraguey, a rural burgher of the time, who gave the place its name. Next came Pierre de Pichard at the beginning of the 18th century, whose continuity was ensured by his grandson, Nicolas-Pierre de Pichard, First President at the Parliament of Bordeaux (guillotined in 1794). In 1796, Monsieur Lafaurie made a “growth” of Peyraguey by investing in the quality of the property. His son, Pierre Lafaurie the elder, succeeded him and had château Lafaurie-Peyraguey classified Premier Grand Cru Classé in 1855. On his death, Count Duchâtel bought château Lafaurie-Peyraguey, which he renovated and modernised. Then in 1879 came Farinel and Grédy, two Bordeaux négociants, then in 1917 Désiré Cordier, wine négociant, and finally in 1984 the Suez group, which undertook a vast renovation and modernisation programme from 1998 to 2005.
In 2014, Silvio Denz became the owner of château Lafaurie-Peyraguey. A great wine enthusiast, he already owns in Zurich Grands Vins Wermuth S.A (which developed the largest wine auction house in Switzerland) and Casa del Vino, as well as the vineyards of Clos d’Agon in Catalonia and Montepeloso in Tuscany. He also oversees the destinies of château Péby Faugères and château Faugères, Grands Crus Classés of Saint-Émilion.
In the heart of the great terroirs of the Sauternes region, the Lafaurie-Peyraguey vineyard lies on the high gravel terrace of Sauternes, 70 metres above sea level, neighbouring château d’Yquem. The plots of L’Enclos and Maisons Rouges represent the historic heart of the great terroir of château Lafaurie-Peyraguey, made up of Quaternary gravel deposited more than 600,000 years ago on a substrate of Aquitanian limestone. To enhance the expression of these great historic terroirs of château Lafaurie-Peyraguey, the technical buildings are fitted with equipment suited to new regulatory and environmental requirements, with fully air-conditioned cellars and controlled humidity.
Coming from the world of perfume (he is chairman of Art & Fragrance S.A. and of the Lalique crystal works), Silvio Denz is also a great lover of art, architecture and the works of René Lalique. The latter created the “Yquem” line of decanters and glasses in 1934 and the “Barsac” line in 1939, and also designed, for Clos Sainte-Odile, as early as 1922, a bottle for the Alsace wines of his friend Pierre Weissenburger. Bottles and decanters are therefore a Lalique tradition. With château Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Silvio Denz combines his passions. Continuing the work of René Lalique, he is shaping for château Lafaurie-Peyraguey, from a work by René Lalique, an exceptional bottle under the Lalique emblem. The engraving “Femme et Raisins”, a René Lalique design created on 28 September 1928 in moulded-pressed white glass on a silvered background, was set into the woodwork of the sleeping cars of the Côte d’Azur Pullman-Express, put into service in 1929.
Today, this René Lalique “Femme et Raisins” engraving lives again, since the 2013 vintage, on the engraved bottle of château Lafaurie-Peyraguey!