Right bank · Libournais · Saint-Émilion, Pomerol
Libournais wines: Saint-Émilion, Pomerol and their neighbours
Around Libourne, on the right bank of the Dordogne, merlot dominates: rounder wines, ready sooner than the Médoc's. Saint-Émilion and Pomerol are its two great names.
The appellations
Around Libourne:
Saint-Émilion grand cru
Around the medieval village listed by Unesco, on the limestone plateau and slopes. Merlot and cabernet franc. Its classification is revised roughly every ten years. Saint-Émilion grand cru wines
Pomerol
About 800 hectares north-east of Libourne, estates that are often tiny, and no classification. Merlot dominates more than anywhere else: round, velvety wines, led by Pétrus. Pomerol wines
Montagne-Saint-Émilion
The largest of the satellites, north of the Barbanne stream: the same merlot, ready sooner, for less. Montagne-Saint-Émilion wines
What makes a Libournais wine
Clay and limestone soils, cooler than the Médoc's gravel, where merlot ripens better than cabernet sauvignon. Merlot dominates, with cabernet franc: round wines, supple when young, that age for a long time on the best ground, the limestone plateau of Saint-Émilion and the Pomerol plateau. To the east, Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux continues Saint-Émilion's limestone slopes.
No right-bank château is in the 1855 classification. Saint-Émilion has had its own since 1955, revised roughly every ten years; the 2022 one runs until 2032. Pomerol has none. The details are on the Bordeaux classifications page.
Saint-Émilion or Saint-Émilion grand cru?
Two appellations over the same area: grand cru is stricter, and only it can be classified. On a label, “grand cru” is the appellation, “grand cru classé” the classification.
Why does Pomerol have no classification?
None has ever been drawn up. Reputation and price stand in for rank, led by Pétrus.
How long should a Saint-Émilion or a Pomerol be kept?
Three to ten years for a simple wine, five to twenty for a grand cru classé or a Pomerol from the slopes, eight to thirty for the premiers grands crus and the plateau growths, longer for Ausone or Pétrus.
Right bank or left bank?
The right bank grows mostly merlot on clay and limestone: rounder wines, ready sooner. The left bank grows mostly cabernet sauvignon on gravel: see Médoc wines.