Chateau Haut-La Pereyre Entre-Deux-Mers Haut-Benauge 2023 750 ML

Chateau Haut-La Pereyre produced its first vintage in 1891 in the lieu-dit of Pereyre, back up in the pastoral hills of Entre-Deux-Mers. It sold its wine in bulk to negociants over the years until Olivier Cailleux’s parents began estate bottling in 1974. Olivier himself was given keys to the domain in 1994 after completing his enology studies and doing internships in South Africa, New Zealand, and at Cos d’Estournel. He is the sixth generation to manage the family’s affairs.\nIn these hills during the Middle Ages the local lord established his digs at the nearby Chateau de Benauge, which served as a fortress during the endless skirmishes of the 100 Years War. It was the last bastion to fall to the French when they won the war in 1453 and finally drove the English out of Aquitaine. The sub appellation of Haut Benauge was named after a local fort (pictured below with Olivier) from the 100 Years War and created in 1955 as a superior zone for whites within Entre-Deux Mers thanks to its hillsides and limestone soils. The appellation is reserved for both dry and sweet whites — red wine falls under the larger umbrella of Bordeaux Superieur — but both colors do equally well here. This zone is located in the hinterland of Cadillac, a river town that still retains its fortified walls and looks straight across the river at the appellation of Graves. (A short aside: The Cadillac Motor Company was named after Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac, a French explorer who was born near Cadillac and who founded Detroit. The Cadillac logo is based on his coat of arms.)