Saint-Julien · outside the 1855 classification
Château Gloria: vintages available, prices and pairings
The grand vin of Gloria, vintage by vintage, with the format, the guide price and what to expect of it today: ready to drink, or to keep. Tick what interests you and the quote request goes off with your selection.
The vintages on the price list
Filter by budget or by “ready to drink”. Nothing is sent until you click on the quote.
The château
Henri Martin put Gloria together from 1942 onwards, plot by plot, buying vines from neighbouring classified growths. The vineyard therefore has the origins of a classified growth, but the château did not exist in 1855 and has never been classified: that is what sets its price.
Mostly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, a little Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Ready at around five or six years, it lasts fifteen to twenty. The same family owns Château Saint-Pierre, a fourth growth. The appellation's other châteaux are on the Saint-Julien wines page.
With around fifty hectares, Gloria is the largest estate in Saint-Julien. Its plots are interspersed with those of the appellation's eleven classified growths; by 1955 the vineyard already brought together vines from seven classified châteaux, four of them second growths. The planting is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. Hand-harvested, the wine is made in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats, then aged for fourteen months in barrels, 40% of which are renewed each year. The estate produces about 220,000 bottles.
What to serve it with
- A vintage of five to ten years: lamb (what wine with lamb), rib steak (what wine with beef).
- A younger vintage: duck breast (what wine with duck), roast poultry (what wine with poultry), a meat barbecue.
- With cheese: pressed cheeses (what wine with cheese).
Which vintage for which occasion
For a wedding or a big table, a Saint-Julien at the price of a classified growth's second wine, often ready sooner: the which Bordeaux for a wedding page compares the appellations, and second wine of a great château says when a big name's second wine is the best choice. For a birthday, the birth year, if the table has it (birth year vintage).
Why isn't Château Gloria classified?
The 1855 classification has been almost entirely frozen since: Mouton Rothschild, promoted to first growth in 1973, is the well-known exception. Gloria, put together from 1942, could therefore not be included. It is not a judgement on the wine.
Gloria or Saint-Pierre?
Same family. Saint-Pierre, a fourth growth, keeps longer and costs more; Gloria drinks earlier. For a big table, Gloria; for a bottle to keep, Saint-Pierre.
When should you drink a Château Gloria?
Allow five years before opening it and eighteen years of good form, a little more in a great year, a little less in a weak year or in half bottles. The table applies this rule to each line; it is not a tasting note, and a badly stored bottle ages faster.
Are the prices shown the ones on the quote?
They are the guide prices from the price list, incl. VAT, per bottle of the format, excluding delivery. The quote confirms the price, the availability of each vintage and the postage; the delivery grid gives the lead times. For a vintage not in the table, the quote request is still open.