Winemaker

Château Beychevelle

Bordeaux, France

A Fourth Growth (1855 Classification) at the entrance to the Saint-Julien appellation, nicknamed “the Versailles of the Médoc”. The name comes from the Gascon “bêcha vêla” – “lower the sails”: ships on the Gironde are said to have lowered their sails in salute before the seat of the Admiral of France, the Duke of Épernon. A ship with a griffin figurehead is still the estate's emblem. The 18th-century château was restored to its former splendour at the end of the 20th century.