Château La Pointe: Vineyards
Château La Pointe is one of the first estates you encounter as you head out of Libourne on the Route de Montagne towards Catusseau, the château and cellars sitting on the left-hand side of the road, albeit set back and somewhat obscured from view by surrounding trees. The name of the vineyard, reflected in the name of the nearby Rue de la Pointe, is said to have originated with the shape of the vineyard which narrows down to a fine point here, very close to the suburbs of Libourne. Notable neighbours include Château Plince on the opposite side of the road, as well as Château Nenin. Behind the estate runs the Ruisseau du Mauvais Temps, a small stream which nevertheless serves as an important conduit for the drainage of water from the Pomerol plateau.
Today there are 23 hectares of vines, making this one of the largest estates in the Pomerol appellation. One or two, such as Château de Sales and Château Nenin have a larger vineyard, but the vast majority of domaines here are considerably smaller than this. With such a large vineyard there is obvious potential for heterogeneity in terroir, so it is perhaps not surprising that one of the first moves funded by Generali France was a detailed soil analysis. This was led by geologist Pierre Becheler, who has performed similar exercises at several other estates, including Château Cos d’Estournel, Château Montrose and Château Branaire-Ducru.
