Château Coutet is a Premier Cru Sauternes producer located in the Barsac region of Bordeaux. It is one of the oldest producers in Sauternes, and has the longest cellar in the region, at 110 meters. Coutet is the Gascon word for “knife”, signifying the dessert wine’s crisp and ripping acidity.
The château is an English fortress that was built in the 13th Century. In 1643, it was acquired by Charles le Guerin, a counselor in the Bordeaux parliament, who then passed it on to his nephew Jean le Pichard in 1695. In 1787, Thomas Jefferson claimed Château Coutet as the best Sauternes from Barsac. Coutet was then acquired by Gabriel-Barthelemy-Romain de Filhot. Unfortunately, as a result of the French Revolution, in 1794 the château was seized by the state, and Filhot was beheaded. Coutet went through a few other owners over the years before it was finally purchased by the Baly family in 1977.
Château Coutet is primarily made up of Semillon, with smaller amounts of Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle. The grapes are grown on clay and limestone soils, giving a distinct minerality to the sweet, botrytized wine. The wine is then aged 18 months in French oak barrels that are 70-100 percent new. Château Coutet also makes a second-tier label called La Chartreuse de Coutet, and in the best years, the estate also produces 1200 bottles of a premium wine, Cuvée Madame de Château Coutet.
