Château Tour Saint Christophe: Vineyards
As already indicated, Château Tour Saint Christophe lies close to (and just to the east of) Château Barde Haut, in the commune of St-Christophe-des-Bardes. Continue to the east and you will find the aforementioned Château Lapelletrie, and beyond that the vineyards of Château Laroque, Château Rocheyron and Clos Dubreuil. Good neighbours to have, on the whole.
As already noted in my introduction, during the 1980s there were 19 hectares of vines here, half Merlot and half Cabernet. The exact identity of the Cabernet varies, but Ginestet stated it was Cabernet Franc rather than Cabernet Sauvignon. Other authors have indicated it was Cabernet Sauvignon though, and given that the Guiter family also had extensive plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon at their other St Emilion estate, Château Tour Musset, they may well be correct.
Peter Kwok soon expanded his 6.5-hectare-vineyard, subsequent purchases of adjacent and nearby parcels resulting in it growing to more than three times this size today, as it currently stands at 23 hectares. The original heart of the vineyard is located around the château, on the slopes below the property, which wrap around the edge of the plateau, including those terraces facing Château Barde Haut on the Cassevert hillside. It is one of very few such terraced sites in the region, with perhaps the best-known being those at Château de Pressac, which is just a short walk along the côtes. Those at Château Tour Saint Christophe are supported by more than 1.5 kilometres of stone walls, and largely face west and south-west across the valley.
