Margaux Second Growth on deep Quaternary gravel, with a Cabernet Sauvignon led first wine and Baron de Brane as its second wine.
The producer
Château Brane-Cantenac is a Deuxième Cru in Margaux. The 72 hectare estate stands on deep Quaternary gravel from terrace 4, and the first wine comes from a single 45 hectare block unchanged since the eighteenth century. Its Cabernet Sauvignon led first wine spends 18 months in 100% new oak. Baron de Brane is the official second wine, aged 12 months in French oak with 30% new and 70% once used barrels. Henri Lurton remains director after transferring ownership to his children in 2022.
Known for
Margaux Cabernet Sauvignon and gravel
Notable facts
Château Brane-Cantenac is classified as a Deuxième Cru in the 1855 Bordeaux Official Classification.
Baron Hector de Branne acquired and renamed the property in 1833.
The Lurton family acquired the estate in 1922.
Henri Lurton has directed the estate since 1992.
The story
The Napoleon of the Vines
Baron Hector de Brane was among the most prominent landowners in early nineteenth-century Bordeaux, holding vineyard estates across several communes in the Médoc. He owned a Pauillac property he had named Brane-Mouton, one of the better-known estates in the northern Médoc at that time. In the 1820s he sold it, concluding — against the prevailing opinion of his peers — that the deep-gravel plateau at Cantenac, on the southern edge of what would become the Margaux appellation, produced superior Cabernet Sauvignon. He used the proceeds to purchase an existing estate in Cantenac and renamed it Château Brane-Cantenac. The Pauillac property he vacated changed hands several times over the following three decades until Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild acquired it in 1853 and renamed it Château Mouton Rothschild. It entered the Bordeaux classification of 1855 as a Second Growth and was promoted to First Growth in 1973. The estate de Brane chose to keep was listed in the same 1855 classification as a Second Growth, the rank it has held ever since.
From the atlas
Château Brane-Cantenac
Margaux Second Growth on deep Quaternary gravel, with a Cabernet Sauvignon led first wine and Baron de Brane as its official second wine.
At A Glance
Classification
Deuxième Cru in the 1855 Bordeaux Official Classification
Appellation
Margaux
Total vineyard
72 hectares
Second wine
Baron de Brane
Soil
Deep Quaternary gravel from terrace 4
The Producer
The Lurton family has managed Château Brane-Cantenac since 1922. Henri Lurton has directed the estate since 1992, and in 2022 he transferred ownership to his children while continuing as director. The first wine is Cabernet Sauvignon led.
Place
Margaux is the appellation on the label. Deep Quaternary gravel from terrace 4 forms the vineyard soil, and gravel generally drains readily and warms quickly, conditions that support even ripening in red grapes.
The first wine comes from a single 45 hectare block, the original vineyard of the estate, unchanged in size since the eighteenth century. The block gives the grand vin one continuous vineyard source within the wider holding.
Wines
The estate divides its production between a first wine and Baron de Brane, the official second wine. About one third becomes the first wine, while two thirds are allocated to Baron de Brane.
The first wine ages for 18 months in 100% new oak barrels. Baron de Brane ages for 12 months in French oak, with 30% new oak and 70% barrels used once. New oak can add toast and spice while allowing gradual oxygen exchange; once used barrels contribute less oak flavour. Baron de Brane has fine, beautifully coated tannins and a fresh, persistent finish.
Final Word
Château Brane-Cantenac joins a classified Margaux estate, an original vineyard block and two clearly separated wines, with Baron de Brane named as the second.