Château Angélus is a prestigious estate in the Bordeaux appellation of Saint-Émilion. Known historically as Château L’Angélus and often referred to as just L’Angélus, the property is one of four in the AOC to be awarded the status ‘Premier Grand Cru Classé A’.
Taking its name from a catholic prayer and its traditional bell ringing call, Château Angélus occupies an enviable location to the west of Saint-Émilion village, within sight - and more significantly - sound, of three churches. It was on the ringing of these church bells - in the morning, at noon and in the evening - that the vine workers and villagers would historically set aside a moment to say a prayer of devotion.
Blessed with a sunny, south-facing aspect, gentle slopes and a good distribution of limestone and clay soils, Château Angélus’ terroir provides perfect conditions for viticulture; indeed the work carried out for centuries on these sacred soils tells its own story of devotion - one of a dedication to the land and to expressing its unique character through the production of exceptional wines.
As is typical of producers in the right bank appellations, the Merlot variety is the dominant grape of the Angélus vineyard, holding a 50% share of the vine. Cabernet Franc occupies marginally less land (47%) - but considerably more than it’s share on many local estates - and there is also a small amount of Cabernet Sauvignon (3%) which features only in the estate’s second wine (Carillon d’Angélus), and its third (No. 3 d’Angélus). The varieties are distributed according to their preference for specific soils - Merlot is predominantly planted on the hill where clay dominates, whilst Cabernet Franc finds its perfect terroir on the lower slopes where the clay limestone soil has a more gravelly consistency.
