The Minnow: Sigalas Rabaud 1975-2019 

BY NEAL MARTIN | JULY 23, 2024

As part of Vinous’ continuing dedication to Sauternes, let’s turn our attention to one of the appellation’s minnows, Château Sigalas Rabaud. This report comes from a visit to the estate in March 2023, so apologies for the delay. I remember three verticals packed into the afternoon and feasting my eyes on a long line of vintages. Pressed for time, I opted to taste at a steady pace instead of hurrying and then asked if the recent vintages could be sent to my home. I suppose that partly led to the delay of this article, but better late than never.

Comte Emmanuel Lambert de Grange contemplating the wines with his daughter Laure.

History

As one might expect, both Château Sigalas Rabaud and Rabaud Promis are spawned from the same ancient estate. The Rabaud family were magistrates in the Bordeaux Parliament, and when Marie Peyronne de Rabaud married Arnaud de Cazeau in 1660, the estate formed part of her dowry. It remained in their possession until 1819, whereupon the mayor, Pierre-Hubert de Rabaud, sold it to Gabriel Deyme. Its wines were deemed equal to Yquem and Rayne Vigneau in the Guide Jullien in 1832, prefiguring its classification as a First Growth in 1855. But eight years later, the purportedly somewhat uncared-for property passed into the hands of Henri Drouillet de Sigalas. In 1880, he expanded the vineyard and augmented a ten-hectare Second Growth, Château Pexiotto. Henri Drouilhet de Sigalas passed away in 1895, leaving his only son Pierre-Gaston orphaned; therefore, he was raised by his nanny down in the Landes region. Perhaps this geographic dislocation meant that he nurtured a passion for horses instead of winemaking.

Consequently, in 1903, Pierre-Gaston de Sigalas sold half of the entire property, a 45-hectare estate, what he called “the jewel of Sauternes”, to Adrien Promis, whose family made wine over in Loupiac. Pierre-Gaston de Sigalas kept the southern slope that surrounded the 17th-century Victor Louis-designed chartreuse and leased out the vineyards. Until 1930, two separate wines were produced. In that year, the lease was not renewed, and Fernand Ginestet formed a shareholding company that comprised heirs from both the Rabaud and Promis families. The intermarriage of the de Sigalas and Promis family in this period effectively reunited the original property. During this time, both châteaux were credited on the label, and the wines were marketed and distributed by the Ginestet Company.

In 1951, René Lambert de Granges decided to repurchase his ancestors’ portion of the estate. When Raymond-Louis Lanneluc bought the Rabaud Promis part, it was divided for a second time. Sigalas Rabaud was taken over by Pierre-Gaston de Sigalas’ granddaughter, Marie-Antoinette, and her husband, the Marquis de Lambert des Granges. They worked to re-establish the estate as one of Sauternes’ most esteemed wines. Their children took over Sigalas Rabaud in 1983 upon their father’s retirement, led by the oldest son, Gérard, until 2007. Between 1984 and 2008, he sought the consultancy of the technical team at Lafaurie-Peyraguey (the Suez Group had bought Cordier, which owned the neighboring estate), and together, they oversaw the modernization of the winery. They introduced a second label, Lieutenant de Sigalas, in memory of Henri de Sigalas in 1998, also a fairly unique non-sulfité cuvée, No 5 de Sigalas, that was introduced in 2017.

Today, the estate is run by Comte Emmanuel Lambert de Grange and his daughter Laure de Lambert Compeyrot. She enjoyed a successful career in antiques before studying at the Oenology Faculty at the University of Bordeaux. Among the improvements she has brought is the implementation of a massal selection program, as well as the cessation of chemicals in the vineyard and the introduction of sexual confusion to naturally eradicate pests. I met Laure de Lambert Compeyrot a few years ago, always flanked by her father. He carries an aristocratic air about him, always smartly attired in a suit and tie. I can’t help but notice that his daughter addresses him with the polite "vous” form instead of “tu”. There is something touching about the formality of the Marquis with the light-hearted joie-de-vivre of his daughter.

The Vineyard

Located in the commune of Bommes, the vineyard comprises 14.25 hectares and represents the smallest of Sauternes’ First Growth. It is currently planted with 85% Sémillon and 15% Sauvignon Blanc. The soil is mainly clay with a gravel-sand topsoil. The south-facing orientation is exposed to the winds, enhancing botrytis formation. Harvest is, of course, undertaken by hand via several passages through the vines. The wine usually undergoes 18 months of élevage in French oak. There is a tradition to use less new oak, as little as 25%, as they dislike the obvious taste of wood on the wine. Like many others in Sauternes, they have turned parts of the vineyard into dry white wines, including La Sémillante de Sigalas, a pure Sémillon, plus an entry-level La Demoiselle de Sigalas that is blended with 30% Sauvignon Blanc.

The Wines

I have fairly deep experience of older vintages of Sauternes, but Sigalas Rabaud is an exception. I have a fond memory of the 1949, cracked open in my tiny flat in South London in the formative days of my career, that is included for completeness. I have had no first-hand exposure to the wines from the 20th century until the 1970s, partly due to exclusivity agreements that prevented the wine from being sold through négociants. Consequently, these vintages had less exposure. Clive Coates MW, writing in Grand Vin, claims that quality was maintained while many Sauternes suffered during this series of poor vintages in the 1970s. While they were not exceptional, both the 1975 and 1979 support that view.

Frankly, the decade of the 1980s was a rather forgettable period for Sigalas Rabaud, and it was not until the mid-1990s that it seemed to rediscover its form. The 1995 ought to have been a vintage that they could build upon, yet the disappointing 1996 Sigalas Rabaud came hot on its heels, though I am uncertain how representative our sample was. The 1997 is much better, and likewise, the splendid 2001, though it is really in the last dozen or so years that investments in the estate have resulted in more consistent quality, high points including an excellent 2009, 2014 and 2018.

Final Thoughts

This was a delightful tasting of one of Sauternes' lesser-known wines. Personally, I often conflate Sigalas Rabaud with Rabaud Promis–indeed, I wrote the latter in error writing this piece! On the other hand, plenty of Bordeaux estates have similar names. These wines have an air of elegance and refinement about them, never the most powerful in Sauternes, occasionally with a subtle Aszú-like trait. In horizontals, perhaps their nuances can be lost. Therefore, it was actually fortunate that I had the opportunity to taste recent vintages at leisure at my home and afford them time to open. It is a sad fact that so many wine lovers, even Bordeaux aficionados, continue to ignore Sauternes. Sometimes it seems as if the appellation does not exist beyond Yquem. Wines like Sigalas Rabaud come from top terroir and offer so much pleasure at a price that is often far less than their peers in the Médoc. That occasionally gives me cause for concern, contemplating how small estates like this will remain financially viable in the long term; perhaps their new dry and sulfur-free cuvées are the way to go. In the meantime, do treat yourself to one of these delightful, delicious wines.

© 2024, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or re-distributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright, but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.

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