Château Ferrière is a wine estate in the Bordeaux appellation of Margaux. It makes Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant red blends and was named a Third Growth estate in the 1855 classification of the Médoc and Graves. It has 18 hectares (44 acres) under vine, mostly within the village of Margaux itself, making it one of the smallest of the classed growths.
The estate was founded and named for Gabriel Ferrière, a member of the court of King Louis XV and wine broker in Bordeaux during the 18th Century. The Ferrière family owned the property until 1914, after which it changed hands a number of times and, for several decades in the middle of the 20th Century, the wine was entirely vinified at Château Lascombes. In 1988, it was bought by the Villars family who own several other wine estates including Château Haut-Bages Libéral in Pauillac. Significant renovations to modernize the winemaking facilities were undertaken in 2013.
The vineyard is planted in soils with deeply set gravel deposits from the nearby Garonne river set above limestone marl. The majority is given to Cabernet Sauvignon vines with some Merlot and small amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. A second wine is made from a 2-ha (5-acre) plot of younger vines, labeled Ramparts de Ferrière.
TASTE:
The nose is fruity, elegant and offers a certain purity of fruit. There are notes of crunchy Morello cherry, crunchy strawberry and slightly blueberry combined with hints of violet as well as a fine touch of camphor, bergamot, eucalyptus and a subtle hint of pepper. The palate is fruity, juicy, balanced and offers good freshness, silkiness, minerality, and purity/cleanness. On the palate this wine expresses notes of fresh/pulpy cherry, crushed currant and slightly crushed blueberry combined with hints of fresh/juicy black berries, fine hints of blueberry, mocha, cardamom as well as a discreet hint of black tea and an imperceptible hint of Sichuan pepper (in the background). Good length. Subtle, almost roasted, hint of eucalyptus in the background/finish. A fine touch of positive bitterness on the finish.