After winding your way through Pomerol and having reached the first vines of Saint-Emilion, two splendid pillars come into view. What better place to halt and take a gentle stroll up this enchanting horse-chestnut tree-lined drive that leads to Château Corbin?
Throughout the different eras in the estate’s history, the place has never ceased to evolve nor stood still. It today boasts a fabulous heritage built up over centuries, while its architectural beauty has today been enhanced by renovation work that blends modern features harmoniously with the historical.
Neo-classical in style and adjoining the original part of the property, the château was built in the 18th century on the orders of the estate’s owners of that time.
Fabulous vestiges of the 16th century part can still be seen at Corbin: a tower containing a stone spiral staircase, an attractive dovecote, an enchanting guest house as well as farm buildings and even a tasting room dating back to the same period.
The origins of Corbin however date from the 15th century. Legend has it that these lands once belonged to the Black Prince, who fought the French at the beginning of the 100 Years War.
While Château Corbin was at the heart of one of the largest seigneuries of Saint-Emilion, it was also the seat of dynamic, vibrant architecture that moved with the times, a feature that could also describe the production of the estate’s wines.
Since 1924, Château Corbin has been in the hands of the same family. Passed down from generation to generation by female heirs, it is today the property of Anabelle Cruse, the fourth generation, and her husband Sébastien Bardinet.
Already as a child, Anabelle spent harvest-times at Corbin. Later, as a student, she would come to the estate every week, fondly sharing precious moments with her grandmother, Marie-Josephe Blanchard Giraud. It was these moments they spent together that helped Anabelle develop a love of the place, its vines, the estate -Corbin in its entirety.
Since those times, thanks to hard work and investments, she has been able to give Corbin its soul, its strength and its identity, while at the same time enhancing the prestige of its terroir, always with excellence as her ultimate goal.
Having trained as an œnologist and managed the estate since 1999, Anabelle Cruse Bardinet has been the owner of the property since 2007. During all these years she has worked consistently on the improvement and enhancement of the estate and its wines, replanting plots, restructuring the site and creating a new plot-by-plot managed vat room. The challenges have been great, but Anabelle has risen to them with rigour and passionate commitment, calling on all her savoir-faire.
The style and precision of Corbin’s wines have progressed in spectacular fashion, while Anabelle has uncompromisingly followed her intuition and beliefs: harvesting the grapes at optimal ripeness to produce fine, elegant wines that display both power and delicacy, while maintaining freshness of fruit flavour and aromatic purity. Each decision she makes is geared towards achieving excellence in her wines while maintaining the utmost respect for the terroir.
Planted in one single block, the 13-hectare Corbin vineyard is situated in the north-west of the Saint- Emilion appellation, on the doorstep of Pomerol.
It is made up of two types of soil:
Ancient sands surrounding the château over an iron-rich clay subsoil, which give the wine its delicacy and finesse.
Clay on the Pomerol side of the estate, which brings the wine its richness.
The dual aspect of Corbin’s soils produces wines of great complexity and elegance.
In 2004, a soil study at Corbin led to the implementation of a drainage system as well as the renewal of 35% of the plots for a better adaptation of grape varieties and rootstocks.
Since 2015, Château Corbin has been a member of the first association of Bordeaux’s Environmental Management System (certified ISO 14001).
In 2017, the Château was awarded double certification ISO 14001 and HVE (High Environmental Value – level 3).
Awards:
95 Wine Enthusiast
93 Decanter
93 James Suckling
93 Robert Parker
92 Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider
91 Wine Spectator
VIVINO 4.3
