Chateau Margaux

"Beginning in 1572, Pierre de Lestonnac succeeded restructured the property as well as the vineyard and anticipated the general evolution of the Médoc that had started to abandon cereal growing in favour of vines. At the end of the XVII century, Château Margaux occupied 265 hectares, land that wouldn't be divided again. A third of the estate was dedicated to vines, which is still the case today. In 1705, the London Gazette advertised the first auction of great Bordeaux growths: 230 barrels of 'Margose'! The 1771 vintage was the first 'claret' to appear in a Christie’s catalogue. The English Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole, bought four casks of Margaux per quarter (that he never paid for). The renown of the 'first growths' crossed the Atlantic and Thomas Jefferson, United States Ambassador to France, detected the hierarchy that already reigned among the best Bordeaux wines, with Château Margau [sic] in first place. He placed an order for Margaux 1784 on which he wrote 'There could’t be a better Bordeaux bottle.'"