Chateau Gilette Sauternes, 1999

It has been a legend since the 1930s, when René Médeville had the genius to make a wine with a long shelf life (fifteen to twenty years) with a wine extracted from a very rich harvest. Situated in the heart of the village of Preignac, this tiny terroir of vines (4.5 hectares) is surrounded by the village walls and has been pampered by the Médeville family since the 18th century. René’s ancestor, Numa Médeville received the lieu-dit Gilette in Preignac when he married Marie Despujols and has been the pride of the family ever since. René developed the technique of long conservation in concrete vats (without contact with the outside). His son, Christian, from 1959, will improve it so that each bottle becomes a real little jewel. Christian’s nickname will be “the antique dealer of Sauternes”. His daughter, Julie Gonet-Médeville, took over the torch of this noble wine, as well as the two other properties of the house: Château Les Justices and Château Respide-Médeville.

The soil in the vineyard of Château Gilette is very draining and is made up of a layer of sand and gravel, on top of limestone blocks. It has been organically enriched since the beginning and most of the plants are more than forty years old. The main grape variety (90%) is Semillon, with the rest Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle.