Château Rochebelle
Château Rochebelle has long maintained a low profile, more so than perhaps any other of the grand cru classé châteaux of St Emilion. One obvious reason for this is its diminutive size; with less then 3 hectares of vines to its name, there simply isn’t that much wine to go around, and historically much of what was produced was quickly snapped up by thirsty neighbours, family members and friends, who were all too aware of its good quality.
Another plausible reason is that it was only as recently as 2012 that the property was elevated to the grand cru classé tier of the St Emilion classification; before that it languished among the ranks of the unclassified crus, one more unfamiliar name among so many, easily overlooked in what is Bordeaux’s largest ‘quality’ appellation.
In addition (and I might just be writing this with my tongue in my cheek), perhaps the proprietor Philippe Faniest simply could not find the time needed to do the necessary promotional work; after all, when he wasn’t tending his vines, or checking on his vats and barrels, Philippe was best known as the operator of the motorised tourist train which trundles around the cobbled streets of St Emilion. I have on occasion wondered whether Philippe ever tried recruiting his harvesters from the clients seated in his carriages. On reflection, probably not. After all, surely all those thirsty neighbours, family members and friends could be called upon to lend a hand?
Whoever it is that picks the grapes, Château Rochebelle deserves a profile on Winedoctor, and so here it is. Over these three pages I present a history of this estate, together with my thoughts on the wines, my tasting notes and score. I promise to focus on the estate and its wine, and not be drawn into making any tourist train wisecracks.
