Château Croix Mouton is located in the commune of Lugon, on the clay soils of Carney Island. The setting is quite bucolic, even pastoral, and during the harvest you can admire the sun rising over the still-smoking waters of the Dordogne in the early hours of the morning from the first floor of the winery, a view punctuated during the day by the passage of cruising yachts hurtling down the river.
A family history
Over the years, with great perseverance and care, Jean Philippe Janoueix has built up this family portfolio of estates spread between Saint Emilion Grand Cru, Pomerol, Saint Georges Saint-Emilion and Bordeaux Supérieur, offering a rare vision and quality.
1867: Jean Janoueix and the origins
An illustrious Corrézienne family, the Janoueix name was first associated with Bordeaux wines when Jean Janoueix entered the wine trade in 1866. Joseph Janoueix, one of his four sons, helped him faithfully with business development, and quickly understood the importance of becoming an owner.
1930: Joseph Janoueix and the first vines
In 1930, he acquired Château Haut-Sarpe, a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classé, before adding Château La Croix and Croix Saint Georges in Pomerol. During this period, he also founded his own trading company and married Marie-Antoinette Estrade, a woman of vision, heart and action.
1960: Jean-François Janoueix and expansion
Son of Joseph, Jean-François acquired Château Vieux Sarpe Grand Cru in Saint-Emilion in 1963, Château Haut Badette Grand Cru Saint-Emilion in 1970, Château Le Castelot Grand Cru Saint-Emilion in 1978, and finally Château La Croix Toulifaut in Pomerol in 1981.
1944: Jean-Philippe Janoueix and the passion to create
1994 marked Jean-Philippe Janoueix's debut as a young farmer, with the creation of Château de Chambrun on a small plot of 1.7 hectares in Lalande de Pomerol. Chambrun quickly emerged as the appellation's benchmark for quality, and became the center of attention. These are the first successful steps in a long series. The success of his vintages opened the door to new opportunities, and he has built up a fine portfolio of wines in the Pomerol, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, Saint-Georges Saint-Emilion and Bordeaux Supérieur AOCs. Always through a meticulous and demanding selection of terroirs and vines.
A philosophy
The estate's teams work with knowledge and respect for ancestral know-how in the vineyard and cellar. With a great deal of humility, they seek out the typicity of terroir wines and work the fruit with precision and finesse. The woodiness is subtle, accompanying but never dominating, allowing the expression of great terroirs. A single watchword: purity. Behind us lie centuries of viticulture, a dense and passionate history between men and a unique product. Innovation exists, and it should, but it's only there to sublimate what's essential: the work of the land, its fruit and the pleasure of tasting it.
Know-how in the vineyard
At the vineyard, they'll talk about rigor, because that's where it all happens. They encourage biodiversity by letting the grass run every other row, allowing insect colonies to thrive and water to infiltrate naturally. The vines are densely planted, creating an almost Burgundian competition between the vines, which have to dig even deeper for nutrients, forced to rub shoulders with the mineral soil of our terroirs. At harvest time, they pick by hand and almost all the grapes are gravity-fed; they take the time to sort twice, always prioritizing fruit quality over yield. All our vines are managed using the "lutte raisonnée" method, a decision that enables us to reduce our ecological footprint while respecting the terroir's ecosystem.
Know-how in the cellar
In the cellar, they seek to understand the terroir and the vintages that come their way. They use gravity as much as possible, they don't trample, they don't stick either... The techniques we use are designed to accompany the fruit with the utmost respect for its flavours. The process is carried out with meticulous care, in a perpetual search for innovations that allow us to express our full potential. Because there's a philosophy at work in every winery, Jean Philippe Janoueix signs his wines with all the humility one should have as a winemaker, but above all, with delicacy and ambition. Trials are ongoing and often successful: after many years of testing, cigar barrels are now an integral part of their signature. With their fatter, silkier mouthfeel, an average of 20% of their production is aged here. Alongside trials on different containers, since 2016 they have been conducting trials on sulfur-free vinification, which they see as promising.
90 /100
- Bordeaux Supérieur
- 019 hectares
- fClayey
- 336,000 bottles per year
Pour en savoir plus, téléchargez notre fiche technique :