Clos du Clocher
Although today this estate is run by the Bourotte family, son Jean-Baptiste having taken over from father Pierre in the early years of the 21st century, for many years the story of Clos du Clocher is intimately intertwined with the name of Audy. The story begins in a distant land, far to the east of Bordeaux, a commune named Corrèze, which lies in France’s Massif Central. It was from here that the Audy family originated, and as far as we are concerned we begin in the late 18th century with the birth of François Audy (1773 – 1825). The records concerning François are surprisingly detailed, and I have managed to trace his ancestors back as far as Léonard Audy (died 1748), three generations hence, but I will take up the story with Francois.
François Audy was the son of another François Audy (1744 – 1809) and Antoinette Courtine (1747 – 1827). We know that he married twice, the first time to Lègère Monteil (1777 – 1810) with whom he had three children, and then to Antoinette Audy (born 1797), a cousin with whom he had a further eight children. This was thus a very large and extended family. One child in particular, Antoine Audy, is of interest to us.
Born in 1826, the year after his father’s death, Antoine Audy grew up in Corrèze and married a local girl from Meymac named Marie Bournel (born 1834). They had one son, Laurent Philippe Audy (born 1859), and in order to find work they left Corrèze, and came to Bordeaux; what Antoine did in the region is not clear, but there is nothing to suggest that he was working in viticulture or wine. This cannot be said of Laurent Philippe, however, who seemed to enjoy some success in this respect, as in 1900 he acquired Château Jonqueyres, an attractive hill-top estate in the Entre-Deux-Mers.
