American-owned Château Fonplégade is now one of the most beautiful wine estates in Saint-Émilion due to the impressive renovations to the winery, château and vineyards over the past few years. Stephen and Denise Adams spare nothing in making their estate a wonderland for producing world-class wines that are refined, structured and have an impressive concentration of fruit.
The vineyards are biodynamically farmed, and the winery uses non-interventionist practices and equipment in the cellar, such as concrete eggs and large wooden casks.
The Adams bought the property and its beautiful, organically farmed hillside vineyards in 2003. They also own Château L’Enclos in nearby Pomerol as well as wineries in California including Adamvs on Napa Valley’s Howell Mountain.
The 2015 is the first vintage under supervision of consultant Stéphane Derenoncourt and his team, and it shows impressive improvement in overall quality, with wines more balanced and refined than the past. It’s the best wine ever made from here. You can taste the wine yourself at our Bordeaux Confidential En Primeur event in Hong Kong on May 23 at Asia Society.
Below are five wines from the 2009 to 2013 vintages tasted by James over the years. You can click on wine names to see their scores and tasting notes to see how the wines have evolved.
Château Fonplégade St-Émilion 2009
Château Fonplégade St-Émilion 2010
Château Fonplégade St-Émilion 2011
Château Fonplégade St-Émilion 2012
Château Fonplégade St-Émilion 2013
