Château Soudars

4.4

(16 customer reviews)

The winemaker

Already active in the family winegrowing group in Saint Seurin de Cadourne (33180) in the Médoc, my father Eric quickly developed a passion for viticulture and wine-making. As a young farmer at the age of 25, between 1973 and 1975, he decided to set up his own vineyard.

With some debt and a small amount of money of his own, he bought small parcels of vineyard land through the SAFER (Société d'Aménagement Foncier et d'Etablissement Rural). For this reason, the vineyard of Soudars is very fragmented, as at the time there were more than 50 different plots on the same plateau of clay-limestone soil in the center of the village and 2 hectares of gravel on the edge of the estuary.

The tillage to prepare the plantations on the vineyard land in the center of the village was very difficult as this rich terroir is made up of a multitude of large fossilised stones from multiple marine organisms present at the time when the river covered part of these surfaces. This work was so important that the neighbouring winemakers doubted his ability to finish. The name of the Château comes from the origin of the place name of these plots; "Soudar" in the plural.

For a blend in keeping with the typicity of our Haut Medoc AOC, he planted half Merlot Noir and half Cabernet Sauvignon with only 1% Cabernet Franc. Soudars is now 27 hectares, so we can say that my father succeeded in creating his own structure, his own vineyard with a lot of energy, even if it seemed a bit crazy... Every year we are happy to supply loyal customers in France, Europe and the great export.

I am the next generation, and one day it may be my children's turn. Our mission: to continue to produce good wines for the pleasure of our customers and to continue this beautiful history of our family in the Médoc.