18 editor-picked Semillon producers across 2 regions.
A guide to Semillon worth seeking out, by region. We list the estates, how each region expresses the grape, and the bottles that show it best.
The only non-Medoc first-growth in the 1855 classification, estate since 1521 in Pessac. Merlot-driven blends from iron-rich gravelly soils; Domaine Clarence Dillon owner.
Tasting: Visits by appointment only for professionals.
Signature wines: chateau-haut-brion-rouge, haut-brion-blanc, le-clarence-de-haut-brion
Scores: Wine Advocate 100 (2009), Wine Advocate 100 (1989)
The only Sauternes Premier Cru Superieur, producing botrytised Semillon-Sauvignon Blanc of extraordinary longevity. LVMH-owned; Sandrine Garbay winemaker; average 10 hl/ha yield.
Tasting: Tours and tastings available by appointment; booking through official site.
Signature wines: chateau-dyquem, y-de-yquem
Scores: Wine Advocate 100 (2001), Wine Spectator 100 (2001)
Saint-Estephe second growth with 91 hectares, famous for pagoda-adorned winery. Fully organic since 2024; Michel Reybier owner; produces red, second wine, and a white Sauvignon-Semillon blend.
Tasting: Visits and tastings available through La Maison d'Estournel hotel.
Signature wines: cos-destournel-rouge, les-pagodes-de-cos, cos-destournel-blanc
Scores: Wine Advocate 100 (2003), James Suckling 100 (2016)
Pessac-Leognan Cru Classe de Graves with origins traced to 1300. 32 hectares; Bernard Magrez owner; truffle-enhanced restaurant and botanical gardens featuring a 1,000-year-old olive tree.
Tasting: Hotel and restaurant on-site; visits and tastings available.
Signature wines: pape-clement-rouge, pape-clement-blanc
Scores: Wine Advocate 96 (2016), James Suckling 97 (2018)
Pessac-Leognan Cru Classe de Graves owned by the Cathiards since 1990. 67 hectares including white wine production; Les Sources de Caudalie luxury spa resort on-site.
Tasting: Les Sources de Caudalie hotel with Vinothérapie Spa and Michelin-starred restaurant; open to hotel guests and visitors.
Signature wines: smith-haut-lafitte-rouge, smith-haut-lafitte-blanc
Scores: Wine Advocate 97 (2018), James Suckling 98 (2019)
Sauternes Premier Cru adjacent to d'Yquem, owned by Domaines Barons de Rothschild since 1984. 93 hectares of Semillon-dominant botrytised dessert wine production.
Tasting: Visits and tastings available by appointment.
Signature wines: chateau-rieussec-sauternes, r-de-rieussec
Scores: Wine Advocate 98 (2001), Wine Spectator 98 (2009)
Sauternes Premier Cru within a fairytale 1618 castle; 18 hectares of enclosed vineyard. Lalique luxury hotel with two-Michelin-starred restaurant and 350,000-bottle cellar.
Tasting: Lalique hotel with two Michelin-starred restaurant; open to hotel guests.
Signature wines: chateau-lafaurie-peyraguey, la-chapelle-de-lafaurie-peyraguey
Scores: Wine Advocate 98 (2017), Decanter 97 (2019)
English-owned Entre-Deux-Mers estate known for crisp whites and reliable Bordeaux reds. 40 hectares; farmhouse accommodation; award-winning wines at accessible price points.
Tasting: Farmhouse accommodation; vineyard visits; winery tours by arrangement.
Signature wines: bauduc-bordeaux-superieur, bauduc-les-trois-hectares-rouge, bauduc-les-trois-hectares-blanc, bauduc-sauvignon-blanc
Scores: Decanter 91 (2020), Wine Spectator 89 (2021)
CIVB-affiliated Bordeaux Wine School city tasting bar next to the tourist office. Guided flights through appellations with bilingual sommeliers; retail purchasing available.
Bordeaux's iconic spiral-staircase wine tower with 15,000 references. Daily by-the-glass tastings span Medoc, Pessac-Leognan, Sauternes; vertical flights from EUR 35.
The 8th-floor Belvedere tasting bar at the Cite du Vin offers 360-degree Garonne panorama with rotating global wine flights, including a strong Bordeaux selections by the glass.
Guided estate tours at Chateau d'Yquem, the sole Premier Cru Superieur in the 1855 Sauternes classification. Visits include the botrytised vineyard parcels, historic chai and structured tasting of Yquem plus Y (dry white).
Why locals love it: English winemaker Gavin Quinney's Les Trois Hectares is the best Bordeaux blanc that most people will never hear of: 100% old-vine Semillon from a 3-hectare plot, fermented in barrel. Decanter 91 points. An Entre-Deux-Mers that makes Pessac-Leognan fans take notice.
Gavin Quinney's Entre-Deux-Mers blanc, English family owned since 1999: citrussy, grassy Sauvignon Blanc-led with a Semillon mid-palate weight. Excellent value for classic Bordeaux blanc.
Three sister estates across Provence under one ownership: Chateau de Selle (Cotes de Provence Cru Classe, Taradeau, acquired 1912), Clos Mireille (Cotes de Provence La Londe, acquired 1936) and Chateau Romassan (Bandol, acquired 1956). Maison Louis Roederer acquired a 66 percent stake in 2004; the Ott family retains the balance and remains involved in operations.
Tasting: Visits and tastings at the three estates by appointment
Signature wines: ott-clos-mireille-blanc, ott-chateau-de-selle-rose, ott-chateau-romassan-bandol
Tip: Clos Mireille's white from Semillon and Rolle is one of Provence's reference whites; Chateau Romassan delivers the Bandol from the same group.
Family-run Cru Classe estate at La Londe-les-Maures since 1929, working 168 hectares of certified organic vineyard on schist soils on the slopes of the Massif des Maures.
Tasting: Cellar visits and tastings by appointment
Signature wines: sainte-marguerite-symphonie, sainte-marguerite-fantastique, sainte-marguerite-rose
Tip: Symphonie is the estate's barrel-fermented prestige rose, the top-of-range bottling.
Burgundy expat Alain Combard bought Figuiere in 1992; the estate is now run by his children Delphine, Francois and Magali. Organic-certified since 1979. 60 hectares of vineyard on schist and quartz soils in the La Londe sub-denomination.
Tasting: Cellar visits and tastings by appointment
Signature wines: figuiere-confidentielle, figuiere-magali, figuiere-delphine
Tip: The Confidentielle white from Rolle and Semillon is the estate's tight, mineral-driven flagship white.
Coastal Clos Mireille tasting cellar at La Londe-les-Maures, pouring the Domaines Ott estate roses alongside the rare Clos Mireille blanc de blancs.
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