Vin Chateau Villa Bel-Air

Chateau Villa Bel-Air is located in the Southern part of Graves, in the parish of Saint-Morillon, near La Brede. Villa Bel-Air's buildings have been listed as part of France's historical monuments and are a perfect illustration of the French Revolution period. In 1777, Louis Dufaure, Marquis de Lajarte, bought a property situated in the parish of Saint-Morillon called Bel-Air de Bellevue. In 1791, he undertook a very fine charterhouse of great architectural finesse that can still be admired to this day. In 1794, the Marquis de Lajarte was imprisoned and rapidly executed. Bel-Air was sold as a national property.In 1988, the Cazes family, already owners of Chateaux Lynch-Bages and Les Ormes de Pez, bought Villa Bel-Air. Jean-Michel Cazes undertook an important programme of restoration and enlisted Daniel Llose and Guy Delestrac to improve the vineyards. The old parcels of land, which had been pulled out, were replanted and the property was equipped with a new drainage system. The production at Villa Bel-Air is done with great care and the wines are traditionally fermented in stainless steel. After blending, the wines are oak aged for 12 to 15 months and each barrel is racked every three months. The wines produced are supple, elegant, well balanced and display luscious tannins.