Tertre Roteboeuf

Wine Region

St-Émilion, France

Vineyard

6 hectares

Tertre-Roteboeuf lies 2km southeast of Saint-Émilion on a very special, peninsular extension of the slope which houses Châteaux Pavie and Larcis-Ducasse. This extends to a hillock, the hauts de côte, with the slopes beneath, pleines côtes, which encompasses the lieu-dit Roteboeuf. A mere 6 hectares in size, the rise to fame of Tertre-Roteboeuf from relative obscurity has been dramatic. Even without a grand cru classé title, it is one of Saint-Émilion’s cult wines.

This turnaround has been spearheaded by a unique individual, François Mitjavile, aided and abetted by his wife Miloute and, increasingly, his son and daughter Louis and Nina. During the early seventies, François and Miloute had successful careers in Paris but regularly visited Miloute’s vigneron family members in Bordeaux. This included her father, who at the time, owned Le Tertre and rented it out to cousins. At this point, they knew nothing about viticulture or vinification, money was scarce and there was no cellar, winemaking paraphernalia or even barrels at the property — minor inconveniences — but they elected to take on Le Tertre vineyard and leave their city lifestyle behind.

Their new venture began with a lengthy two-year stage at Château Figeac, where François learnt the practical side of the vineyard and cellar. Château Le Tertre was then returned to family control after the 1977 vintage. The couple decided to differentiate themselves from the other Tertres by adding Roteboeuf (literally translating as ‘belching ox’) to the name, alluding to the cattle which used to graze the land.

This addition also reflects the different slopes of the property — Roteboeuf for the lower slopes and Tertre for those higher up, surrounding the house and garden. Finally, Château Le Tertre-Roteboeuf was en route. There was a name, a vineyard, a base of experience on which to build and a potentially lovely house, with inspirational views over the Dordogne and across to the Entre-deux-Mers. Since the 1994 vintage, François has removed the word ‘Château’ from the name of the estate, believing it suggested a grandeur at odds with his unpretentious approach to winemaking.

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With a humility common amongst so many of our principals, François sees himself as a translator of terroir rather than some omnipotent being on which his wines depend.

His remarks on vinification are spartan and always hark back to the quality of the grapes, which are not de-stemmed. Fermentation, in concrete, is a powerful process, lasting three to four weeks, attaining temperatures of around 35º for fruit maceration and optimum fruit expression.

Elévage takes place in a temperate, non-air-conditioned cellar where the wine is oxygenated via barrels and several rackings. François views the importance of oxygen as both dramatic and risky — while exposure to oxygen is not the ultimate goal and is in itself dangerous, the reaction of oxygen on constituent molecules allows for the development of aromas and flavours. The super-ripe fruit responds well to this treatment, perfectly articulating terroir and vintage.

There is no second wine, a Mitjavile idiosyncrasy which he believes produces a more honest and true rendition of each year. The wines are then matured for 22 to 24 months in very fine-grained French new oak barrels with a medium to long toast. Fining and filtration very much depend on the vintage. François aims to make emotive, affecting wines which stir the soul and focus on complex aromatics, rather than power.

The vineyard has an average vine age of 40 years, planted with 6000-7000 vines per hectare, 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. Both varieties are picked at optimum ripeness and, where possible, have extended hang time. François likens perfection to that state of maturity when the fruit is so ripe it is almost raisined — a goal which takes nerve to achieve. His late harvests are legendary. At Tertre-Roteboeuf, the climate is generally maritime but with noticeable continental influences, for example, there can be periods of intensive heat. The soil consists of very rich clay over limestone, which is very slow to warm up in spring, ensuring that the grapes will never ripen early. The exposition ultimately allows for optimum ripeness and considerable power, whilst the gradual warming of naturally cool soil acts as a counterbalance — the great paradox of Tertre-Roteboeuf! This power and elegance in equilibrium is François’ hallmark.