quiet scale and uncompromising dedication to craft
Château Meylet is a small, family-run estate located in the heart of Saint-Émilion, within the Bordeaux wine region, on the limestone-rich slopes near the Grandes Murailles of Saint-Émilion. Passed down through five generations, the estate covers just 2.3 hectares, with old vines averaging 70 to 80 years of age. This part of Saint-Émilion is known for its clay-limestone and sandy-calcareous soils, producing wines of depth, structure, and longevity. Château Meylet stands out within the appellation for its quiet scale and uncompromising dedication to craft. Founded on family land first acquired in the late 19th century, Château Meylet remains a deeply personal, multigenerational estate shaped by patience, observation, and respect for nature. David Favard, now at the helm alongside co-manager Laurence Chrétien, carries forward this lineage as a craftsman-winemaker, vinifying gently by gravity and allowing each wine to find its own balance with minimal intervention.
biodynamic farming and gentle vinification
The vineyards are farmed biodynamically, guided by close observation of nature and a belief in balance between soil, vine, and wine. All work is carried out by hand, from meticulous grape-by-grape sorting at harvest to gravity-fed vinification that avoids pumps entirely. Since the 1990s, Château Meylet has vinified without sulphur, extending this philosophy to ageing in 1998. Fermentations take place in wooden truncated-cone vats inspired by Burgundian methods, including pigeage, allowing for a gentle, precise extraction that respects the character of each vintage.
why bbi chose château meylet
Bogie’s Best Imports chose Château Meylet for its rare combination of heritage, humility, and conviction. With extremely small production of around 4,000 bottles per year, the wines are shaped by vintage rather than recipe, aged according to their needs in oak barrels, jars, or glass dame-jeannes, and bottled by hand. Château Meylet represents Saint-Émilion at its most human scale, producing wines that are deeply rooted in place, expressive of terroir, and made with nothing added except care, patience, and time.
