Château Guiraud, 2021 Update
My current run of Bordeaux updates has helped to chart the changing face of this region. In recent years new faces have appeared at Château Pontet-Canet, with Justine Tesseron and Mathieu Bessonnet set to take the property into the future, following the departure of Melanie Tesseron and Jean-Michel Comme. So too at Château Léoville-Poyferré (and of course the other Cuvelier estates), where Sara Lecompte-Cuvelier has stepped up to take on the running of the properties followed the retirement of Didier Cuvelier. And also Château Branaire-Ducru, where François-Xavier Maroteaux has taken the property in hand, following the tragic passing of his father Patrick.
And so to Château Guiraud (pictured below), where again there has been a change in ownership in recent years.
The ownership of Château Guiraud is split four ways, with the first slice taken by Xavier Planty; he was appointed manager here in 1988, under the Narby family, but nearly three decades later he assumed control, in part at least, buying out the owner with the help of three investors. These were led by Peugeot Invest headed up by Robert Peugeot (as in Peugeot motor cars), and two minority shareholders Stephan von Neipperg of Château Canon-La-Gaffelière (and other estates, of course) and Olivier Bernard of Domaine de Chevalier. This arrangement persisted until this year, when it was revealed Xavier Planty had sold up, allowing the hotelier and businessman Mathieu Gufflet to take a stake.
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