65% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc

Food pairings: Small game birds, red meats such as an entrecôte bordelaise, lamb (a lamb sauté with herbes de Provence is a classic match), wild boar, duck confit, soft cheeses and aged Comté.

Winemaking: The grapes are picked entirely by hand and sorted by hand, then go into small, temperature-controlled, resin-lined cement vats so that each plot can be fermented separately and keep its own character. After two to three weeks on the skins, the wine ages for 15 to 18 months in oak barrels before the final blend. Serve at 16 to 18°C (61 to 64°F).

Vineyards and terroir: Château Martinet lies in Libourne, within the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru appellation. Its vines, about 40 years old on average, grow on sand and gravel soils that drain well and suit the Merlot, while the Cabernet Franc adds freshness and structure. The vineyard surrounds a fine eighteenth-century country house set in gardens lined with grand old trees, which was long used as a hunting lodge before it became a wine estate.

Family and history: The Pradel de Lavaux family has made wine since 1642 and lives by the motto "Festina lente", hurry slowly. From Château Martinet, the family's home, it runs eight estates across Saint-Émilion, Pomerol, Fronsac, Lalande-de-Pomerol and Bordeaux, working only with Merlot and Cabernet Franc, and it also owns the Bordeaux merchant house Horeau-Beylot, founded in 1740. Axel Pradel de Lavaux, the ninth generation, has managed the vineyards since 2014.

In the pictures: Vineyards in the Saint-Émilion appellation in early autumn (photo: Christophe Eyquem, 2010, CC BY 3.0).