Château Guiraud
Originally, the domain "Maison Noble du Bayle" owes its name to a Bordeaux wine merchant, Pierre Guiraud, who acquired it in 1776. It is ranked Premier Grand Cru Sauternes-Barsac in 1855 (at that time still under the "Bayle").
During the long period from 1861 to 1932, he was in the hands of a family of industrialists, the Bernard family and marriage, the Maxwell family. It was a golden age for Guiraud, with the renovation of cellars, the Castle and the expansion of the field. In 1932 it was bought by Paul César Rival, an eccentric millionaire, one of the passions, besides wine, was aviation. The story goes that one day, he landed accidentally in the vineyards of Château Yquem!
The area, partly devastated by war, gradually declined and was finally sold in 1981 to the Narby family, Canadian family of Egyptian origin who made his fortune as owner. The completely restored Narby the field while wine quality had declined alarmingly in the 70 Xavier Planty They hired in 1988 to direct the operation, and the area regained its rank.
When Narby wanted to sell in 2006, Xavier Planty succeeded in forming a consortium for the purchase of Guiraud with Robert Peugeot, Olivier Bernard (Domaine de Chevalier) and Stephan Von Neipperg (Canon La Gaffelière), ensuring to date a perfect continuity.
Located Sauternes even with a vineyard of 100 hectares, planted with Semillon (65%) and Sauvignon (35%) of severe soil on clay and sand, Guiraud is the only 1st classified growth in 1855 certified organic. It produces a second wine "Le Dauphin de Guiraud" (about 40 000 bottles / year) and a dry white wine the "G de Guiraud" (70 000 bottles / year, Bordeaux Supérieur appellation).
