A Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé since 1955, Château Ripeau traces its origins back to the 13th century, when the seigneury of Corbin was broken up during the French Revolution. Then owned by Victorin Pailhas, a merchant, banker and Libourne town councillor, Château Ripeau was mentioned in 1868 in Edouard Féret's reference book "Bordeaux et ses vins."
The property was subsequently acquired in 1874 by two brothers, Denis and Eugène Bühler, landscape architects renowned for having created over a hundred gardens and parks, including the Parc Bordelais. In 1908, the estate passed into the hands of Raoul Gunsbourg, director of the Monaco Opera, who sold it in 1917 to Marcel Loubat, brother of Edmonde de Wilde, then owner of Pétrus, who gave the estate its letters of nobility.
Since 2015, Château Ripeau has belonged to the Grégoire family, who have carried out major renovation work on the vineyards and infrastructure to breathe new life into this exceptional terroir.
Neighbouring prestigious châteaux such as Cheval Blanc, Figeac, La Dominique and Corbin, Château Ripeau reigns over a 16.1-hectare single vineyard. With an average age of 35, the vines are planted on a high point on the north-western plateau of Saint-Émilion, on a terroir composed of slightly gravelly sand on the surface and clay-iron veins in the subsoil. The grape varieties are Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
