Château Haut-Balastard

Located in the Entre Deux Mers region, the Château Haut-Balastard family estate has cultivated its 20 hectares of vineyards for five generations. The Canterranne family estate is located in the area of the villages of Sauveterre de Guyenne and Sainte Hilaire du Bois, where the wines produced belong to the AOC Bordeaux appellation. In 1964, Lucien Canterranne left his job as a factory worker to settle in the area with his wife and four children. However, he soon realized that it was not possible to manage the 20-hectare farm alone, so in 1986, then 20-year-old Michel, the eldest and only son of the siblings, joined his father in helping the farm. Michel's studies in viticulture and winemaking have helped the duo create Haut-Balastard into the farm it is today. Nowadays, Michel's son Alexandre Canterranne is in charge of the farm's operations.

The soil of the Entre Deux Mers area is calcareous clay soil and the Haut-Balastard family cultivates both Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in their orchards, typical for the area. The rows of vines are planted at a distance from each other so that the planting density of the orchards is 3300 vines per hectare. This ensures that each vine gets the amount of sunlight and soil minerals it needs. The average age of the ropes is just under 20 years.

The reputation of Entre Deux Mers has not spread as far as, for example, Pauillac and Margaux, which is why the region is able to offer wines with an amazing quality-price ratio. The wine producers in the region also want to make their wine to be enjoyed young, so in addition to oak barrels, steel and cement tanks are also used in winemaking.