Château Potensac

Château Potensac and the ladies of the family

For as long as anyone can remember, Château Potensac has been owned by the Delon family. Traditionally, it was always passed down to the women in the family, however, this line has already been broken. Jean-Hubert Delon, the current owner, received the estate from his paternal grandmother, Georgette Liquard. 

The estate is located on a hill in the north of the Médoc peninsula, not far from the Gironde estuary. This favourable position was already settled in prehistoric times. By the way, the name Médoc comes from the Latin "in medio aquae", which means "in the middle of the waters". Before it was made usable for viticulture about 150 years ago, the peninsula was mainly swampy. The planting of large pine forests drained the land, so that today the great Médoc wines can be produced here. 

Location and terroir of the Château

Château Potensac is located in the commune of Ordonnac, where it has about 60 hectares of vines that thrive on diverse soil types. The main components are:

• Gravel
• Sand

These sites are situated on various subsoils with high proportions of lime and clay. The vines can grow very old on these soils, some of the plots have plants that are over 80 years old. Already in the first edition of the Bordeaux wine guide Féret, this particular characteristic was highlighted.

The wine

Two wines are produced on the estate today: The main wine Château Potensac, as well as the second wine Chapelle de Potensac in allusion to the chapel which stands directly in front of the winery building in the middle of Ordonnac. The first wine is vinified from the grape varieties Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Frac and a small portion of Petit Verdot. The second wine lacks the refinement with the last grape variety.