Château La Croix de Gay: The Raynaud Era
Under Jean-Marie Joseph Barraud the estate was certainly producing wines under the name of La Croix de Gay, although in terms of its footprint on the Pomerol landscape it was certainly a very different estate to the one that exists today. Jean-Marie was perhaps one of the more significant figures in the story of Château La Croix de Gay; not only was he responsible for expanding the vineyards, but he was probably responsible for other notable family acquisitions, including Vieux Château Groupey, vines in the Groupey lieu-dit on the Pomerol plateau. Barraud also joined the Pomerol syndicat, and was mayor of Pomerol between 1912 and 1919.
Jean-Marie Barraud and his wife Marguerite had one child, Claire Marie Marthe Barraud (1900-1968), who went by the name of Marthe. In 1920 she married Jean Marcel Ardurat and with the passing of time they came to inherit the domaine, which they continued to develop and expand. They had one daughter named Geneviève in 1925, and in 1947 she married Noël Raynaud, who soon took over the running of the domaine.
