GRAPE VARIETAL
71% Cabernet Franc, 25% Merlot, 4% Malbec.
APPELLATION
Sainte-Foy Côtes de Bordeaux AOC (part of the Côtes de Bordeaux group since 2016).
TERROIR
Clay-limestone soils on hilly slopes straddling Pessac-sur-Dordogne and Gensac near the Dordogne River—conditions that favor Cabernet Franc’s structure and lift while giving Merlot a firm, clean base.
VINIFICATION
Grapes are destemmed and crushed with a brief cold maceration; fermentation runs around 26–28 °C, followed by ~10 months in French oak (largely used) before bottling.
TASTING NOTES
Dark cherry and blackberry sit alongside hints of graphite, clove, and bay; medium frame with fine, well-knit tannin and a tidy, fresh finish that keeps the wine moving at the table.
FOOD PAIRING
Classic: roast lamb, grilled steak, pork tenderloin with herbs, or hard cheeses. Inventive: mushroom and lentil shepherd’s pie, soy-ginger glazed eggplant, black-pepper cacio e pepe, or Korean-style short ribs.
Sainte-Foy Côtes de Bordeaux sits on Bordeaux’s far eastern edge, straddling hills above the Dordogne and looking back toward Saint-Émilion. It’s classic Right Bank country with clay-limestone underfoot and a climate that ripens Bordeaux varieties without pushing them out of shape. Reds here tend to favor clarity and lift over Left-Bank flash, and that describes this wine to a “T.”
Château Carbonneau is a true family affair. Jacquie and Wilfrid Franc de Ferrière breathed life back into the estate in the early ’90s, rebuilding the cellar and returning to bottling by 1996. Today, their children shape the rhythm of the place—Hugo managing sales and connecting with international clients, Pierre tending vines and fermentations, and daughter Margot greeting visitors. A guest house and tea room add texture to the experience, keeping the château lively in every season.
Set on sun-catching clay-limestone slopes near Pessac-sur-Dordogne and Gensac, the vineyard thrives under organic certification (AB) since 2022. A herd of Blonde d’Aquitaine cattle roams the lower fields, their composted manure enriching the soil—a self-sustaining loop that roots the vines in the rhythms of the land.
The De Ferrière family — Photo courtesy of the estate
In your glass, Château Carbonneau Séquoia leans into dark fruit redolent of blackberry and black cherry, threaded with gentle hints of clove and a subtle splash of leathery earth. The palate is medium-plus in weight with fine, steady tannins, with oak staying in the background to add shape and texture rather than flavor. Plenty of fresh lift keeps the finish tidy with a perfect balance of fruit and structure.
At the table, start with the classics: grilled beef or lamb, roast pork with herbs, and aged cheeses. If you want to branch out, try it with Korean-style short ribs, black-pepper cacio e pepe, mushroom-lentil shepherd’s pie, or miso-glazed eggplant with sesame and scallion. The estate’s own notes also point to “Asian cuisine,” which fits the wine’s deft balance of fruit, spice, and clean finishing lines.