Château La Conseillante: Vineyards
Château La Conseillante has, on closer inspection, a quite remarkable position on the edge of the Pomerol appellation, looking across past Château L’Évangile to Château Cheval Blanc beyond. On the Pomerol side the vineyards are therefore surrounded by those of Château L’Évangile to the east, Petrus to the north and Vieux Château Certan to the north-west. The Conseillante vines extend across the road and run very close to the aforementioned Château Cheval Blanc, which is the fourth notable neighbour. Some of these vines are within the St Emilion commune, but are permitted for inclusion in the Pomerol appellation.
The terroir of the Conseillante vineyard has been extensively studied. Simplifying, the sections around and to the east of the château are a sandy-clay, while those between the château and the road are more gravelly, although still with a significant proportion of clay, and some elements of sand. This soil type extends across the road a little but thereafter, as the vines run down to Château Cheval Blanc, the soils change. Here there is much more sand and gravel, and less clay. The style of wine from the two sections are, Jean-Michel Laporte once told me, are entirely different.
