Saint-Macaire, also known as Bouton-blanc or Moustouzère, is a historic grape variety of the Bordeaux vineyards, with its first official mention dating back to 1783-1784 in Libourne. Once highly prized for its adaptability to the alluvial soils of the Right Bank, notably between Saint-Macaire and La Réole, it represented a significant share of the plantings before the 1920s. Its presence is documented in Graves, Réolais, Bas-Médoc and Premières Côtes, where it could make up to a quarter of the red plantings.

Listed as a secondary grape variety in the 1935 Bordeaux appellation decree, Saint-Macaire, despite its natural vigour and good resistance to coulure (shatter), required short pruning to guarantee optimal ripeness. Its high productivity required careful management to obtain quality harvests. Today, it is among the lost grape varieties of Bordeaux that Château Cazebonne is striving to reintroduce, alongside varieties such as Fer Servadou or Mancin, as part of an approach to preserve our viticultural heritage and adapt to climatic challenges. It is worth noting that Manseng noir: a Pyrenean grape variety, is a parent of Saint-Macaire. To find out more about the Syrah grape variety (in Bordeaux), another ancient variety we are rehabilitating, consult our journal.

Ampelographic profile

Characteristic	Description
Synonyms	Bouton-blanc, Moustouzère, Saint Macaire
Budburst	Contemporary with Cabernet Franc.
Flowering	One week after Merlot.
Veraison	Not specified.
Ripeness	Late second epoch, just before Cabernet-Sauvignon. Requires a reduced crop load for good ripeness.
Vigour	Vigorous and productive.
Growth habit	Not specified.
Susceptibility to downy mildew	Relatively resistant.
Susceptibility to powdery mildew	More susceptible than to downy mildew.
Susceptibility to botrytis	Not specified (lighter-bodied wines, therefore possibly less susceptible).
Susceptibility to black rot	Not specified.
Aromatic profile	Generally light-bodied and lightly coloured wines.
Winemaking potential	Initial vinifications at Cazebonne have shown a very interesting pH, with a very supple tannic structure allowing for a longer maceration (around 20 days). Promising if well-managed.

Saint-Macaire, once a pillar of Bordeaux plantings and today in a phase of rediscovery, represents a precious viticultural heritage and an opportunity for the future of the Gironde vineyards. This work of rehabilitating forgotten grape varieties by Château Cazebonne is made possible thanks to the support of wine lovers. To learn more about these little-known varieties, we invite you to download our book dedicated to the history of Bordeaux grape varieties, to test your knowledge with our oenological quizzes, and of course, to discover the wines of Château Cazebonne, crafted with passion and respect for this rich heritage.