Gironde: ‘pirate’ châteaux aim to dust off Bordeaux wines

The article from SudOuest.fr highlights the Bordeaux Pirate collective, an initiative launched in late 2019 to dust off the image of Bordeaux wines. Jean-Baptiste Duquesne, owner of Château Cazebonne in Saint-Pierre-de-Mons, is featured as one of the founders and a pioneer of this movement. A former digital entrepreneur (founder of 750g), he became a winegrower five years ago. At Château Cazebonne, Jean-Baptiste Duquesne farms biodynamically and experiments with forgotten Bordeaux grape varieties, having already planted 26 varieties from which he has crafted a cuvée named ‘Comme en 1900’ using five of them. He is even planning to cultivate 57 of them on an experimental plot to understand their potential, particularly their disease resistance and vinification possibilities. Championing irreverence, he aims to create a third way for Bordeaux wines, beyond the grands crus and entry-level offerings, by bringing the creativity and innovation of winegrowers to the fore.