The Couvent des Jacobins is an estate nestled in the heart of Saint-Emilion. This grand cru classé is a real gem. The estate’s history is particularly incredible and its wines live up to it. Two wines are available directly at the estate: Couvent des Jacobins and Menut des Jacobins. On top of these two wines, the Couvent recently launched Calicem: a wine outside of time.
Discovering the Couvent des Jacobins
The Couvent des Jacobins is a fairly confidential property. You may not have heard of it yet, but the bottles that come out of it are of very high quality and can accompany many meals. On our side, it was during our interview with Emmanuel Coiffe of Eugen Grand Vin that the property was mentioned. Bullseye.
After a few phone calls and exchanged messages, here we are at Couvent des Jacobins, and not for just any occasion. Our discovery takes place in August during the Festival des Grands Crus Musicaux. Xavier, the property’s owner and a passionate classical music fan, hosted his estate for the event: a great success.
Couvent des Jacobins: a story at the heart of Saint Emilion
The Couvent des Jacobins is a historic property at the top of the village of Saint Emilion. From 1389 the Couvent is administered by the Jacobins and serves as a stop on the road to Santiago de Compostela. It’s also an important place to visit, but not only that. The clergy also cultivate the vine and make wine that ends up on the kingdom’s greatest tables.
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During the French Revolution, the Couvent des Jacobins is sold as part of national assets. Various families pass through. We have to wait until the early 20th century, and precisely 1902, for Jean Jean. Denis, the estate’s manager, explained to us how important that moment was. Jean was a worker of the soil, and he put all the savings of several years of labour into buying the estate and passing it to his family. In 1969, the Couvent enters the Saint Emilion classification as a grand cru classé.
Since 2010, Xavier Jean, Jean Jean’s great great grandson, has been involved in the Couvent with the great help of Denis Pommarède. The Coronavirus epidemic has prevented us, for the moment, from meeting Xavier. We’ve exchanged many times by phone and had the opportunity to meet Denis.
Today, the Couvent des Jacobins continues the family history of the estate. Above all, it’s an extremely well-made wine, with respect for the fruit and a desire to always do better. The family spirit reigns at the Couvent among everyone who works there. That family spirit is felt in wines made with passion that won’t leave you indifferent.
The vision of the Couvent des Jacobins
While the Couvent des Jacobins’s history goes back several centuries, the estate is always seeking to innovate and do better. Denis and his team work hard every day on the wines’ development. The estate is also trying new things by using Petit Verdot on top of the traditional Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The estate also uses bespoke conical tanks both for vinification and for the ageing of the Petit Verdot.
The Couvent des Jacobins also has other surprises in store with a separate wine: Calicem. Made from a parcel of Merlot of less than a hectare and from vines over 60 years old, this stand-alone wine is already grand. Vinified separately, it’s then aged in oak barrels for between 18 and 24 months. Fewer than 3,000 bottles are produced each year and numbered by hand. They’re placed in a superb wooden case that can join your cellar for many years, on top of being particularly handsome in itself. To get a few bottles of this wine produced in extremely limited quantities, head to the contact page on the Couvent des Jacobins website. On my side, Denis generously gave me a bottle of the 2015 vintage. I won’t hide that it’s still carefully stored in my wine cellar and I’m waiting a few more years to have the chance to taste it. A perfect Christmas gift for a wine lover.
A march toward organic at the Couvent des Jacobins
This news didn’t go unnoticed. At the end of October 2020, the Couvent des Jacobins announced it was beginning a transition to organic. We’ll have to wait a few more years to taste a 100% organic vintage on your tables. We can’t wait to see the result of this approach. Driven in the right direction of history, this approach promises lovely results and lets the Couvent des Jacobins climb another step in cultivating wine with respect for the soil and the fruit.
Our take on the Couvent des Jacobins in Saint Emilion
You get the picture: the Couvent is an estate with a very family spirit. As a former convent, the architecture is worth the trip, with spectacular cellars holding magnificent vintages and letting the team bottle at the perfect temperature in an ideal place. On our side, we had the chance to take part in the harvest. Every operation is done by hand and the 2020 vintage is already very promising. The Couvent des Jacobins is waiting for you and we very warmly recommend it.
I hope you’ll have the chance to discover this superb Saint Emilion grand cru. On my side, I hope to have the chance to chat again with Denis and Xavier in the months to come. This time around a microphone to share even more precisely their story and adventures at the Couvent. Stay tuned to the Wine Makers Show, the wine podcast, and you might have a lovely surprise.
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