Domaine de l’A is owned by Stéphane and Christine Derenoncourt. Stéphane is one of the most prominent personalities in Bordeaux.

His career began at Château Pavie-Macquin, where he played a crucial role in the famous estate’s rebirth in the 1980s. Stephan von Neiperg and he then co-directed the cult winery La Mondotte. Their collaboration has continued with some of von Neiperg’s other holdings, including Château Canon, Château La Gaffelière, and Château Aiguilhe. In 1999, Stéphane created Vignerons Consultants, a wine consultant firm whose ten employees now advise wineries in nine countries around the world.

He is not a winemaker who feels the need to put his signature on all the wines he touches. Rather he puts the emphasis on terroir, helping it express itself in his wines. Le Domaine de L’A is in many ways the training centre and the laboratory for the methods and treatments disseminated by his consulting firm. All ten acres of his vineyards are cultivated biodynamically. On their high quality clay-limestone soils, the Derenoncourts are increasing the proportion of cabernet franc in their blend, currently at 25%, for the extra stability and tension the variety brings. Harvested manually, the grapes are placed in oak vats without additional yeasts, and are punched down in true Burgundian style. The wine is aged in new and slightly used oak barrels. This is the quintessence of Côtes du Castillon, a rare mix of power and elegance.