Château Séraphine

Château Séraphine, owned by the Krajewski family, has been referred to as “A rising star in Pomerol” by Jane Anson from Decanter magazine. It is also one of only five Bordeaux properties that were rated in the Top 100 Wine Discoveries of 2020 by the Wine Advocate.

In 2016, father-daughter team Martin and Charlotte Krajewski, owners of nearby Clos Cantenac in Saint-Émilion, purchased two Pomerol estates, Château Monbrun and Clos Picassou. It is quite a rare occurrence in Pomerol to have a property for sale, so it was an opportunity they could not miss. With the permission from the Syndicate of Pomerol and the Bordeaux Authorities, the two properties were combined and renamed Château Séraphine – homage to Martin’s grandmother and his Polish farming heritage.

Pomerol’s deep soils produces some of the world’s best Merlots. Château Séraphine is split between two distinctive vineyard parcels, with each farmed using sustainable and adaptable practices in accordance with the health and maturity of the vineyards. All soil work is done by horse. Canopy management, de budding, crop-thinning and de-leafing are all are done by hand to protect and maintain the correct yields and enhance quality.

Each vineyard is between 1 and 1.2 hectares in size. In the Mazeyre block, about 40% of it is planted to 40-year-old Merlot, while the rest was planted with Merlot in April 2017. The soil consists of a rare and predominantly blue and reddish clay soil just below a layer of deep gravel. In the Plince block, about 60% of it is planted to Merlot, while the rest was replanted with Cabernet Franc in April 2017.

At Château Séraphine, they attempt to intervene as little as possible in the winery. No pump-overs are done during fermentation, only gravity is relied on for extraction. Malolactic fermentation is completed in 300L oak barrels. Winemaker Charlotte Krajewski believes that the integration of the wood is much better for the style and objective that they seek in terms of finesse and elegance. The racking of barrels is only done when necessary.