Château Reysson: Vineyards
Château Reysson sits on a crest of higher ground which, as indicated in my profile, is close to the edge of the Marais de Reysson. This crest forms the peak of a north-facing amphitheatre, the vines being situated on the plateau around the château, and also running down the slope to the lower ground. This lower ground, beyond the Reysson vineyard, is mostly used for arable agriculture with a few pockets of vines; beyond that is the broad expanse of the marsh.
We are quite inland here, the château and vineyard sitting just to the west of the town of Vertheuil, some way west of the St Estèphe appellation. This leaves Château Reysson with the Haut-Médoc appellation. The soils here do not tend to have the very desirable gravel-rich profile found closer to the edge of the Gironde. Instead there is clay, dotted with limestone and concretions of fossilised shells. Deep below these surface soils there is a limestone bedrock, testament to this region’s watery past. This is a soil profile which naturally favours Merlot.
Indeed, while today there are 54 hectares of vines planted here, 45 hectares are dedicated to Merlot, backed up by 5 hectares of Cabernet Franc, along with 3 hectares of Petit Verdot and just 1 hectare of Cabernet Sauvignon. This vineyard profile tends to come through in the vines as well, the blends dominated by Merlot. The vines are pruned using the Guyot Poussard method, similar to Double Guyot although the vines have a fruiting cane and a regenerative spur on each side of the plant, the method felt to be beneficial for sap flow and vine health.
