The château was built in 1875 in a very Baroque style that was popular at the time. It was surrounded by five hectares of vines.
The Dourthe brothers, Roger and André, devoted their efforts to expanding the vineyard when they arrived at the estate in 1929, succeeding in attaining twenty hectares in 1967. At this point, Roger’s son, Philippe, became manager. He added a further 67 hectares over a forty-year period, including vines on the three finest rises in Moulis. In 2007, Philippe Dourthe handed over management to his children Caroline, Pascal, and Magali. A fully-qualified team respectful of the Dourthe winemaking philosophy is now in control. A draconian selection at harvest time, precision winemaking in temperature-controlled vats, and careful ageing in barrel produce wines with a sumptuous colour, as well as rich, concentrated aromas, subtle tannin, and an astonishingly long aftertaste.
"MAUCAILLOU" means "bad pebbles", as understood by farmers in the Middle Ages, because this kind of gravely plot of land was unsuitable for any cereal cultivation, the main source of survival at the time. Subsequently these gravel ridges became a favourite terroir for high-expression vineyards.
Thus was born MAUCAILLOU, a wine-growing castle full of talent, since its wines have been regularly in the spotlight since 1889 all over the world, during competitions and "blind tastings" between professionals.
The Château Maucaillou is a red wine produced in the Moulis-en-Médoc appellation. With an average age of over 30-years-old, the vines are mainly planted on Günz gravel, as well as clay-limestone soil. The wine is aged in barrels (40% in new barrels, 40% with one wine and 20% with two wines). The 2016 Château Maucaillou is made from an estate with a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 3% Petit Verdot.
The wines of Château MAUCAILLOU are sumptuous in colour, with a particularly subtle and pleasantly fruity aromatic power; with very ripe, concentrated flavours; harmoniously balanced, full-bodied and generous, all in finesse and elegance. They are "long in the mouth" with a certain "friendliness" which characterises them and a remarkable aptitude for aging thanks to very fine tannins.
In front of the organoleptic qualities of the wines of Château MAUCAILLOU, many wine writers assimilate it to a Grand Cru Classé of the Médoc: Classified Growth
This is also the opinion of Robert PARKER who writes of MAUCAILLOU that it "is equivalent to a 4th cru".
Patrick DUSSERT-GERBER classifies it as “Second classified great wine, category B”.
Claude FERRET specifies, in the edition of BORDEAUX ET SES VINS, that MAUCAILLOU "could appear in a new classification".
