Château Jean-Faure in Bordeaux and Mas Amiel in the Roussillon are intimately associated with one man, Olivier Decelle, the lively and charming owner of the Roussillon vineyard (home to the famous Maurys), who took the plunge and diversified into Bordeaux in 2004. Stéphane Derenoncourt, who describes himself as “definitely not an oenologist”, came on board and Claude and Lydia Bourguignon, the current leading soil specialists, rounded off the team. After major renovation work in the vineyard and winery, Jean-Faure began to establish his credentials, gaining ground on the right bank big hitters and unexpectedly winning awards usually reserved for Libourne’s heavyweights. The newcomer’s ambition is to restore this vineyard to its rightful place among the great Saint-émilion Grands Crus Classés. With 18 hectares of continuous vineyard in the finest Saint-émilion terroirs and illustrious neighbours including La Dominique, Ripeau, Figeac, and Cheval Blanc, Olivier Decelle’s fledgling venture is proudly holding its own among its peers and its wines are improving year on year. “”The success of our approach is based on the notion of overall respect, to preserve the terroir and protect the consumer.” His philosophy is to preserve the life of the soil and ensure careful stewardship of the vines to produce wines which are a credit to their appellation. The terroir with its gravel, clay and ferruginous sand produces an atypical grape variety blend for Saint-émilion, comprising 54% Cabernet Franc, 40% Merlot and 6% Malbec. Olivier Decelle has also invested in the Médoc region with Haut-Maurac and Le Fronsadais and the Haut-Ballet and Bellevue châteaux.
