Château Canon
The Wertheimer brothers Alain and Gérard, the same Wertheimer brothers that own the fashion house and perfumer Chanel, entered the exclusive club of Bordeaux proprietors with the acquisition of Château Rauzan-Ségla in 1994, having narrowly missed out on the acquisition of Château Latour in 1993 when they were pipped at the post by François Pinault. Château Rauzan-Ségla required a huge amount of investment, but with no shareholders to answer to (even today Chanel remains privately owned) and a long-term vision the brothers clearly felt justified in their actions. And, thanks to their commitment, there was success too; the wines of the downtrodden Margaux estate showed tangible improvements.
Nevertheless, the brotherly duo do not seem to have been satisfied with Château Rauzan-Ségla alone (having had Château Latour in their sights but then settling for Rauzan-Ségla perhaps meant they had a little spare change lying around), so when just two years after their first purchase Château Canon came on the market they and their manager John Kolasa snapped it up. Like Château Rauzan-Ségla this was a fairly dilapidated property which required major renovation and rescue of the vineyards, a process that continued on for many years (and in fact is still ongoing). But, as I have indicated above, the Wertheimers clearly have the will and the financial clout, and what they have achieved at these two properties is remarkable. I provide more detail on their work below, but first I have some history – starting long before the arrival of the Wertheimer brothers – to offer.
Jacques Kanon
The vineyards of Château Canon, which lie on the road running west out of the town of St Emilion itself, near the heart of the St Emilion appellation, originate from a small vineyard planted around the Church of St Martin by Jean Biès in the early 18th century. At this time the estate was known as Clos St Martin – this being a true clos, a vineyard encircled by a wall – rather than Château Canon, as it is known today. The origin of the modern name perhaps becomes a little more clear when we see that in 1760 Jean Biès sold his 13-hectare vineyard to a man by the name of Jacques Kanon.
