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Château Batailley

Batailley is the larger sibling of neighbouring Haut-Batailley, the two estates having split in 1942. Thus much of this estate's history is as for Haut-Batailley, from its possible Medieval origins through to the early 20th century, before the aforementioned division, when it was under the control of two brothers by the name of François and Marcel Borie. Thus, the opening sections of this profile naturally mirror the words that open my profile of Haut-Batailley. In latter times, however, the two estates must certainly be considered separately, especially since the revitalising work of Batailley's current proprietor Philippe Castéja began in the early years of the 21st century.

A History of Château Batailley

The name of the original Batailley estate suggests a military origin, a battle perhaps, and indeed this may be so. The vineyards of modern Bordeaux were, in many cases, the scenes of Anglo-French conflicts of varying degrees of ferocity during the course of the wars which are known, collectively, as the Hundred Years' War. The location of Batailley, a few miles to the west of Latour, itself the location of one such siege, was reputedly the site of just such a skirmish near the end of the war. An alternative explanation concerns a local vigneron named Batailley, who was credited with planting the vineyards here, although the case for this is less robust. It is also a less bloodthirsty tale, and thus obviously of less interest; I prefer the suggestion of battle myself. Whatever the explanation, by the end of the 18th century there is a vineyard here named Batailley, one which was to give rise to the Batailley and Haut-Batailley that exist today.

At this time the vineyard was in the ownership of the Saint-Martin family, three siblings of whom two were of the cloth, one a nun and one a priest. Two of the three, the two sisters Marianne and Marthe, sold their portion of the estate to Jean-Guillaume Pécholier in 1791. The estate was now in two parts, although this is not the origin of the split that gave birth to Haut-Batailley. From Pécholier it passed to his son, Amiral de Bédout, and following his death in 1816 the estate was sold by auction; it was purchased, not quite in its entirety, by Daniel Guestier of Barton & Guestier. He acquired most of the estate immediately, purchasing further shares and land as time went on, including plots adjacent to Lynch-Bages and Grand-Puy-Lacoste. He was responsible for considerable investment in the property, renovating the château and improving the winemaking facilities. When he died in 1847 Batailley had garnered a good although not exalted reputation, and the scene was set for the estate to creep in as a cinquième cru in the 1855 Classification of the Médoc.

From Guestier to Castéja

The property was inherited by Guestier's three children, divided rather unevenly with two daughters taking a quarter each and the son, Pierre-François, taking half. This state of affairs continued onto the next generation, each of the offspring of the two daughters taking on their quarter share respectively, but by 1866 the family decided to sell the estate, all involved relinquishing their respective shares, and it was acquired by a Parisian banker named Constant Halphen. By this time the estate had expanded considerably, from the 39 hectares exploited by Guestier to a very respectable 55 hectares, and its reputation was largely maintained under Halphen, when the vineyards were tended by the brothers François and Marcel Borie. Upon Halphen's death in 1932, the Borie brothers purchased the estate and continued to make the wine for another decade, before in 1942 it was divided into the two properties we know today as Batailley and Haut-Batailley.

The division was not the result of some convoluted family struggle, rather it was to stave off future difficulties with the inheritance of the estate. François, who that year had purchased Ducru-Beaucaillou, kept the smaller part of the vineyard which, when augmented by some vines purchased from Duhart-Milon in 1951, became Haut-Batailley. The larger part, which came to Marcel, and which included the château, naturally kept the vineyard's original name of Batailley. It is at this point, then, that the two properties go their own ways. At Batailley, Marcel continued to run the estate until he died in 1961, bequeathing the estate to his daughter Denise, and her husband Emile Castéja. The estate augmented the Castéja family's vineyard holdings quite nicely, a portfolio which now includes Beau-Site in St-Estèphe, Trottevieille in St-Emilion and nearby Lynch-Moussas in Pauillac. Today it is Philippe Castéja, Emile's son, who runs the show, having assumed full responsibility for the running of the estate in 2001, Emile having to take a backseat that year due to ill-health. His own son, Frédéric, is now also waiting in the wings.

Vineyards and Vinification

The vineyards of Batailley today comprise about 57 hectares, and are positioned a few kilometres inland, largely to the west of the D206 which runs southwest out of Pauillac and surrounded by neighbours Latour, Grand-Puy Lacoste, Lynch-Bages and Pichon-Lalande. The terroir is fairly typical for the region, with large areas of gravel in places, although there are also some elements of sand. The vines are planted at a density of 8000 per hectare and cover a range of ages, from young to fairly elderly, and this all adds up to an average age of about 40 years. The vineyards are very much dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, as one might expect, this variety accounting for 70% of the plantings, the remainder being 25% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. These percentages have hardly changed at all during the years that the Castéja family have been running the estate. What Philippe has done in the vineyard has been to install new field drainage, and to introduce more elevated trellising, a change I have seen implemented in many Bordeaux vineyards over the last decade or two. He also introduced more intensive green-harvesting in 2002, picking unripe fruit in June and August, in the first case reducing yields and in the second aiming for more homogenous and ripening. In the same year he also commenced leaf-thinning.

The harvest is manual, then the fruit is destemmed prior to a cold maceration of up to 5 days followed by a 15 to 20-day fermentation, with advice from oenologist Denis Dubourdieu. This was once achieved utilising a mix of stainless steel and oak vats, but in 1989 the estate switched to 100% temperature-controlled fermentation in stainless steel. The chai has again been refurbished in 2006 under Philippe Castéja's direction, so he now has 60 individual vats mostly of 110 to 130-hectolitre capacity, allowing for plot-by-plot fermentation, as well as a new grape reception facility. The malolactic occurs part in steel vat, but a portion of the embryonic wine is transferred into oak for this, before all the wine is run into oak barrels for 16 to 18 months, with 55% of the wood being new each vintage, 45% one-year old. Once finished the wine is fined using egg white, and then bottled without filtration. The grand vin, and indeed the only wine as unusually there is no second label here, is Château Batailley (typically 21000-25000 cases per annum).

The Wines of Château Batailley

But what of the wines? Until recent years Batailley had a reputation as a drinker's claret, a no-fuss bottle, the purchase of which will not break the bank. Cousin (or should that be sibling) Haut-Batailley has much the same reputation, yet perhaps, in my experience at least, certainly offers better value for the money spent. The wines of Batailley can be enjoyable, but tend to be a rather solid, full and blustery tweed-jacket of a wine; it will not impress with its huge depth and complexity, or with its seductive spice, or with its silky, elegant texture, as some other wines of the commune may do from time to time. The 1995 which I tasted recently was a very good example of this, a nice wine typical of Pauillac, but really not quite as expressive of the appellation as we might hope for. No doubt it will show better with time, but some of the magic quality that marks wine out as Pauillac will stay forever locked away here. If I were to sum up what the wines are lacking in a single word, it would be vigour. For wines from a classed growth estate they don't seem to display the definition and shape that many of their peers do.

Vintages since the turn of the century, however, do seem to hold more promise, and this may reflect the presence of Philippe rather than Emile Castéja at the helm. The 2003 is an interesting example of how much a wine can evolve over a year or two; initially brawny, muted, sullen perhaps, when tasted in early 2007 it was much more open and welcoming and I was forced to revise my score upwards by a not inconsiderable amount. And in subsequent vintages, the wines have certainly been approachable and attractive. I don't concur with the opinions that some hold, that this estate is now a hot ticket in Pauillac, one of the best values that the appellation can offer, because although the prices still lag behind some of its peers so does, for my palate at least, the amount of pleasure the wines offer. And this continues through into very recent vintages, not just the difficult years like 2007, but also those where success is widespread, such as 2005 and 2009. That is not to say, however, that there haven't been very positive and reassuring developments here in recent years, and Batailley is an estate which I will continue to watch with interest. (22/3/07, updated 23/2/11)

Contact details:
Address: Château Batailley, 33250 Pauillac
Telephone: +33 (0) 5 56 00 00 70
Fax: +33 (0) 5 57 87 60 30
Internet: www.batailley.com
GPS: 45.176829, -0.772927

Château Batailley - Tasting Notes

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Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2010: Cabernet Sauvignon 78%, Merlot 19%, Petit Verdot 2% and Cabernet Franc 1% - very similar to 2009 just with slightly more Cabernet, slightly less Merlot - with 13.5% alcohol. This has a vibrant appearance, with decent concentration of colour. There is a rich, creamy fruit vigour here on the nose here. This is certainly promising. Quite smoky aromatically, and there is some influence from a rather flashy application of oak here. The palate has a very soft and gently creamed start, with the very broad and open style that I expect from Batailley. Lovely fruit quality though, and piles of charcoaly tannin underneath, and also good acidity to back it up. Really tight grip in the finish. There are elements here that are lovely, but it seems rather loose-knit. Nevertheless this is one of the best showings of Batailley I have ever tasted; if it tightens up in barrel it could be very fine indeed. From my Bordeaux 2010 primeurs assessment. 16-17/20 (April 2011)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2009: Rich red fruits here, more toasty oak too, but a surprising freshness to the fruit character which has a lifted, red berry style. The palate is rather gentle in terms of substance and weight, showing some elegance, with restrained fruit character sitting within a frame of tannin and fresh acidity. It has a supple and rather understated presence on the palate, showing gentle structure and a slightly caramelised fruit sweetness. It seems a touch diffuse but there is promise here. From a tasting of 2009 Bordeaux at two years of age. 16/20 (October 2011)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2009: Cabernet Sauvignon 74%, Merlot 22%, Cabernet Franc 2%, Petit Verdot 2%. Picked at 41 hl/ha. A glossy appearance, rich but bright fruit character on the nose, with a cherry and damson fruit profile. Nicely composed on the palate, very integrated and held together well. Rather a juicy style of fruit here, with soft acidity and rather firm alcohol. The fruit tends to fade away in the mouth. A little straightforward, but it should develop more interest with time. From my 2009 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 14.5-15.5+/20 (March 2010)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2008: This has some really attractive creamy fruit on the nose, solid, polished but open and evocative. And there is a nice hit of Pauillac spicy-pencil shaving to it as well. A supple wine on entry, rather flat and diffuse here but showing a little more rounded body through the midpalate and plenty of peppery substance underneath it all. Nice, polished finish. It still has that rather loose-knit feel I find in a lot of vintages of Batailley but this is still young to be fair. And given time I think it could work very well. From a tasting of 2008 Bordeaux at two years of age. 16+/20 (October 2010)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2008: Dark, a little perfumed, and with charcoaly notes. An attractive palate, fresh and appealing, with fresh acids and firm ripe tannins. The fruit has nice aromatics, with a slightly chewy character. This isn't as well defined as some, nor does it have the most vigour. Still good though. From my 2008 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 16-17+/20 (April 2009)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2007: Rather bright red fruit here, walking hand in hand with some golden, toasty oak. Certainly it has a restrained, elegant character, suggesting suppleness and an appropriate blend of different components in a relaxed, unforced manner. The wood does bring an interesting tinge of exoticism as well. I like it. It feels elegantly alluring rather than voluptuous. The palate follows on in the same vein, an appropriate weight, lovely balance, delicately formed but with a really appealing integration of different components. An attractive wine made within the confines of the vintage, with freshness, light and lift. From a 2007 Bordeaux tasting at four years of age. 14.5/20 (November 2011)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2007: The nose here offers up elements of dark fruit and a seemingly light application of oak. There is gentle substance on the palate, all in a very unknit style though. There is some mildly attractive fruit, although with very round edges, and a soft, ill defined finish. All told, not particularly distinguished. From a tasting of 2007 Bordeaux at two years of age. 13.5+/20 (October 2009)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2007: Very sweet, overt, cola-tinged fruit on the nose which doesn't hold a lot of appeal for me. Nevertheless, the palate starts off quite supple, fresh and clean. But there is a firm and broad tannic base very evident through the midpalate and a firm acidic core. There is quite some extraction here. From my 2007 Bordeaux en primeur assessment. 14.5-15.5+/20 (April 2008)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2006: Attractive, dark, concentrated fruit on the nose. Comes across as slightly raw, with a heat coming alongside the fruit. The palate has a bold structure to match, violet-tinged fruits but with a very firm substance underpinning it all, a rather hard shell for the fruit, and very grippy tannins too. Nice acids. All rather bold and hard at present with slightly obtrusive tannins with a green edge. Very tannic finish. A touch coarse. From a 2006 Bordeaux tasting at four years of age. 15+/20 (November 2010)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2005: This has a very open, accessible nose with some nice summer fruit character. The palate is immediately seen to have a very soft style, with a lot of texture and a wealth of ripe, chewy, mouth-coating tannins. It has a very flashy, slightly meaty toffee-tinged flavour and along with this there is rather low acidity. Unsurprisingly it all rounds off in a big, grippy finish. A touch overdone for me. Nice wine, but this will never be great. From my tasting of 2005 Bordeaux at two years of age. 16+/20 (October 2007)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2004: A good colour here, although showing a rather dusty hint of maturity. An appealing nose, perfumed and full of attractive and defining elements including graphite and pencil shavings. Certainly defined and attractive. The palate starts off rather dry and reserved, with a soft and open layer of maturing dusty fruit sitting above - and fairly detached from - the structural elements underneath. Between them there lies a void, a little hollow note at its core. There are certainly positive notes here but I think at this stage there was still room for improvement at Batailley - and it does show. From a 2011 Bibendum tasting. 14.5/20 (March 2011)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2003: This is showing quite a nutty nose, with a wealth of deep fruit, although sill with the confit character typical of the vintage, whereas at the UGC tasting in 2005 it was really very subdued on the nose. This is markedly different (and better) today. Quite fresh on entry, deeply fruited, with rich extract and a nice tannic structure. Good grip. This once muted, brawny wine now shows a much more appealing, firm but not over-the-top style. A much more solid performance here. 16.5+/20 (February 2007)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2003: Subtle, rather muted on the nose. Not brimming with texture or character on the palate, and showing very firm, prominent tannins too. Decent weight, and rather firm acidity, but really all structure and little else at present. Brawny style. Merely quite good. From my 2003 Bordeaux assessment. 14.5/20 (October 2005)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2001: An attractively deep colour. Not very expressive on the nose though. This is closed down, which always makes the wine difficult to judge. On the palate, there is good texture, good weight, clearly a nicely composed wine, with grip and freshness. But at the moment it is so closed it is not possible to give any firm comment on overall quality. Nevertheless, it certainly has promise. 15-16?/20 (February 2007)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 1995: Lovely glossy colour, which still has a very youthful hue. A open and attractive nose, with mineral, iron-edged bloody fruit. Undeniably left bank claret. Full bodied and slightly austere on entry, with a firmly structured presence showing plenty of peppery tannin through the midpalate and finish. Slightly soft acidity but no lack of grip, and drinks well with food because of that. A little style typical of Pauillac, with firm iron-cased fruit, green olives and a little pencil lead. Spicy, black peppercorn finish. Very good, but needs four hours and more in the decanter. Has continuing potential. From a 1995 vintage ten years on tasting. 16.5+/20 (December 2005)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 1985: This has a red-tawny ochre colour. Another gorgeous nose, with a touch of power. Classic style, with gravelly notes. A full, firm rounded texture on the palate. Nicely structured, big and sweet fruit, with a peppery edge. Pauillac style, with some fudge and tobacco notes. From a Bordeaux 1985 tasting. 17/20 (September 2002)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 1961: A fairly well coloured wine. The nose is unfortunately peppered with unpleasant seaweed and iodine aromas, with a rotten, musty element to it. A very tertiary stage of development I think! On the palate it has a nice texture but rather lacks flavour, and is in fact quite dead. No doubt other bottles may well have fared batter over the years, and this may not be typical.  From a 1961 Bordeaux tasting. Not scored. (June 2007)