CHÂTEAU LATOUR-MARTILLAC,
A NEW ERA FOR THIS GRAVES CLASSIFIED GROWTH
The Château Latour-Martillac, a Graves Classified Growth owned by the family Jean Kressmann since 1930, has just completed a grand scale renovation. This work signifies a new era for the property, because in addition to offering a more spacious and efficient winemaking facility, it promotes the property’s strategy to advance technically and develop their wine tourism..
THE FAMILY PROJECT
Begun in Spring 2018, the construction of the new building, which includes a vat room and an underground cellar for red wine, took nearly 18 months to complete. This marks an important milestone for the estate, which invested more than 5 million euros in this new technical installation designed by the Bordeaux architect Philippe Ducos.
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“This cellar is a long-term investment
we are making for our children.”
Tristan Kressmann, Owner and Chairman of the Board
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The renovation of the cellars is a project to develop the family property with the objective of passing on to future generations a new working facility at the cutting edge of technology, which combines both traditional know-how and technical innovation.
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“We have ensured that the younger generation is involved in our thinking.
We wanted to provide our children with a working tool
which they won’t need to replace for several years.”
Loïc Kressmann, Owner and Managing Director
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A FUNDAMENTAL RENOVATION
Although the former vat room and barrel cellar made it possible to vinify and mature the wine in satisfactory conditions, they nevertheless presented many limitations.
Over the years, the large vat room – built in 1989 – proved to be inadequate. Part of the vat room was made up of large capacity vats (225Hl, 380Hl), which were not suitable for optimal parcel selection. Moreover, the functionality and layout of this working area, as well as the safety of the teams, showed limitation on a daily basis.
As for the barrel cellar, it lacked space, particularly following the recent expansion of the vineyard. In fact, the property had grown from 35 hectares of red wine production in 2000 to 45 hectares in 2019. In addition, this maturation cellar was a real “energy drainer”.
Faced with these numerous constraints, the Kressmann Family plan was for a brand-new facility that could respond to current and future technical and environmental challenges.
A CELLAR WORTHY OF A CLASSIFIED GROWTH
The former cellars built in 1989 have been replaced with a sleekly designed installation that integrates perfectly with the architecture of the existing buildings. Elegant without being ostentatious, the new vat room and ageing cellar are designed to promote purity. The Kressmann family has opted for simplicity and above all functionality, with the aim of greatly enhancing the quality of the red wines.
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“We have light, confort and precision.
Everything comes together to express the best of our Cabernet-Sauvignon,
our Merlot and our Petit Verdot.” – Tristan Kressmann
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The new cellars, with a total surface area of 1700m2 over three levels, was designed by the Bordeaux architect Philippe Ducos, who has designed several other iconic buildings (Château de Fieuzal, Château Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, Village de Bages in Pauillac, Hôtel & Restaurant La Co(o)rniche in Pyla-sur-Mer…).
The new workspace represents a floor area of 730m2. More spacious and bathed in natural daylight, the new vat room offers optimal working comfort and greater safety for the technical teams, who first made use of this space for the 2019 harvest (the vat room has been operational since the beginning of September).
Manufactured in France by the company Serap, 22 new double-walled truncated conical stainless-steel vats, with a capacity of 124Hl and 70Hl filled by gravity, have been added to the 27 existing vats for a total capacity of 4500Hl. More efficient and less water consuming during cleaning, they importantly allow a more precise parcel selection in relation to the size of each plot.
The new 600m2 underground barrel cellar, arranged into two areas, boasts greater thermal insulation for maturing red wines in barrel in perfect conditions.
The existing facilities dedicated to white wine have been preserved, being entirely functional for fermentation and ageing in barrels.
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A UNIQUE WELCOME AND VISITING EXPERIENCE
With its reputation for hospitality and conviviality, Château Latour-Martillac has chosen to integrate a new visitors circuit (notably allowing visitors to view the wine-making facilities during harvest), as well as a new tasting area and a new art-deco inspired boutique, to offer visitors a unique visiting experience.
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“These new facilities will enable us
to better serve our customers, our wine merchants
and to strengthen our wine tourism activity.” – Tristan Kressmann
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KEY DATES
THE PROPERTY
1989: Renovation of the old temperature-controlled stainless-steel vat room, capacity of 30 hectares of red vines.
2007: Creation of a winery annex to integrate an additional 10 hectares.
THE RENOVATION
24 May 2018: Official launch date of the works with the building permit approved 1 year earlier by the Local Council in Martillac.
From 5 to 18 June 2018: Demolition of the old cellar.
From 31 July to 20 September 2018: Excavation of 6000m3 of earth (4m deep) and foundations laid of future underground cellar.
Mid-October 2018: 3000m2 of cast concrete slab.
End of October to beginning of November 2018: Assembly of the outer preliminary-walls and installation of the interior walls.
January to February 2019: Installation of the framework.
1st March 2019: Highest point of the construction reached (celebration of completion with the building corporations).
June 2019: Delivery of the 22 new vats.
Summer 2019: Installation and connection of the new vats.
30th September 2019: Commissioning of the new vats with the first delivery of harvest.
End January 2020: The first barrels are placed in the underground maturation cellar.
9th March 2020: Official inauguration of the new cellar.
SOME FIGURES
5,5 million euros of investment
1700m2 created (underground cellar + ground floor + first floor)
660m2 new vat room
22 new truncated, conical, double-walled vats, of which 16 are 124Hl tanks, 6 are 70Hl tanks
4500Hl total capacity
42 vats in total
600m2 underground cellar
100m2 reception areas created
WINE TOURISM
Visits and tastings from Monday to Saturday, from 10h00 to 18h00, all year (except public holidays).
Classical, sensory, prestigious, thematic visits, for individuals, professions, groups and families.
Visits offered in French, English and German
Visits and tastings by reservation only.
Tailor-made services on request.
Shop open from Monday to Saturday, during the opening hours of the property. No reservation necessary.
