Château Branaire Ducru 2003
The 2003 Château Branaire Ducru is a red wine from the Saint-Julien appellation in Bordeaux, produced by Château Branaire Ducru and classified as a 4th Growth (Grand Cru Classé) in 1855. It combines 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot. The Wine Advocate awards it 94/100, James Suckling 94/100, and Jancis Robinson 15.5/20. Critics describe a broad and complex wine, with tannins ranging from silky to firm depending on the tasting, showcasing a profile of fruit, floral, spicy, and oak notes. The Wine Advocate recommends drinking between 2014 and 2020; Jancis Robinson indicates 2009 to 2014.
La bouteille proposée
- Size
- Bottle (75cl)
- Packaging
- Loose
- Label Condition
- Perfect
- Fill Level
- Perfect
- Capsule Condition
- Perfect
Identité du vin
- Couleur
- Red
- Pays
- France
- Région
- Bordeaux
- Appellation
- Saint Julien
- Producteur / Domaine
- Château Branaire Ducru
- Millésime
- 2003
Cépage et assemblage
- Grape Variety
- 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot
Château Branaire Ducru
Château Branaire-Ducru is an estate in the Saint-Julien appellation, in the Médoc, classified as a Fourth Grand Cru in 1855. Its 60-hectare vineyard, spread across some fifteen micro-terroirs of gravel, has been managed by the Maroteaux family since 1988. François-Xavier Maroteaux now runs the family estate.
- Owner
- Famille Maroteaux (groupe familial présidé et dirigé par François-Xavier Maroteaux)
- Maître de chais
- Jean-Dominique Videau
- Surface (ha)
- 60.00 ha
- Production (average bottles per vintage)
- environ 300 000 bouteilles/an
Histoire du domaine
The estate dates back to 1680, when Jean-Baptiste Braneyre became its first owner. The Duluc family succeeded him between the 18th and 19th centuries; they had the château built in 1824 and helped to establish the wine’s reputation. In 1855, Branaire-Ducru was classified as a fourth growth in the Médoc. Patrick Maroteaux and his family acquired the estate in 1988. They then undertook major works on the vineyard, the fermentation cellar, the wine cellars and the château buildings, and created the second wine, Duluc de Branaire-Ducru. A gravity-fed fermentation room was installed in 1991 and subsequently expanded in 2010. Jean-Dominique Videau, an agricultural engineer and oenologist, has led the technical team since 2002 and is involved in the blending process. François-Xavier Maroteaux joined the family business in 2015 and took over as estate manager in 2017. After more than three years of work, a new gravity-fed fermentation room comprising 75 vats, 65 of which are suspended, was inaugurated in April 2024.
