ONE OF THE OLDEST ESTATES OF SAINT-EMILION
Throughout the different eras in the estate’s history, the place has never ceased to evolve nor stood still. It today boasts a fabulous heritage built up over centuries, while its architectural beauty has today been enhanced by renovation work that blends modern features harmoniously with the historical.
Neo-classical in style and adjoining the original part of the property, the château was built in the 18th century on the orders of the estate’s owners of that time.
Fabulous vestiges of the 16th century part can still be seen at Corbin: a tower containing a stone spiral staircase, an attractive dovecote, an enchanting guest house as well as farm buildings and even a tasting room dating back to the same period.
The origins of Corbin however date from the 15th century. Legend has it that these lands once belonged to the Black Prince, who fought the French at the beginning of the 100 Years War.
While Château Corbin was at the heart of one of the largest seigneuries of Saint-Emilion, it was also the seat of dynamic, vibrant architecture that moved with the times, a feature that could also describe the production of the estate’s wines.
A FAMILY AFFAIR
Since 1924, Château Corbin has been in the hands of the same family. Passed down from generation to generation by female heirs, it is today the property of Anabelle Cruse, the fourth generation, and her husband Sébastien Bardinet.
Already as a child, Anabelle spent harvest-times at Corbin. Later, as a student, she would come to the estate every week, fondly sharing precious moments with her grandmother, Marie-Josephe Blanchard Giraud. It was these moments they spent together that helped Anabelle develop a love of the place, its vines, the estate -Corbin in its entirety.
Since those times, thanks to hard work and investments, she has been able to give Corbin its soul, its strength and its identity, while at the same time enhancing the prestige of its terroir, always with excellence as her ultimate goal.
ANABELLE CRUSE BARDINET’S WAY OF WORKING
Having trained as an œnologist and managed the estate since 1999, Anabelle Cruse Bardinet has been the owner of the property since 2007. During all these years she has worked consistently on the improvement and enhancement of the estate and its wines, replanting plots, restructuring the site and creating a new plot-by-plot managed vat room. The challenges have been great, but Anabelle has risen to them with rigour and passionate commitment, calling on all her savoir-faire.
The style and precision of Corbin’s wines have progressed in spectacular fashion, while Anabelle has uncompromisingly followed her intuition and beliefs: harvesting the grapes at optimal ripeness to produce fine, elegant wines that display both power and delicacy, while maintaining freshness of fruit flavour and aromatic purity. Each decision she makes is geared towards achieving excellence in her wines while maintaining the utmost respect for the terroir.
