51% Sauvignon Blanc, 26% Sémillon, 23% Muscadelle

Food pairings: All kinds of fish and seafood, from shellfish to sushi and sashimi, as well as chicken, veal and cheese.

Winemaking: Each year the blend is put together from the finest lots of long-term partner growers by Clarendelle's head of production, Nathalie Bassot-Dworkin, under the eye of the Domaine Clarence Dillon oenologists. For Clarendelle white, the Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle typically get a short skin-contact maceration before slow, gentle pressing; the juice is cold-settled, fermented at low temperature in stainless-steel vats and aged on its fine lees until bottling. 2025 was one of the earliest and warmest vintages in recent memory, with frost-free budbreak in early April, flowering in early June and three rainless summer months, and the team waited for full physiological ripeness to balance sugar and acidity. Serve at 10 to 12.5°C (50 to 55°F); no decanting needed.

Vineyards and terroir: The white grapes come mainly from the Graves region, including Pessac-Léognan, the home of Château Haut-Brion, grown by partner winegrowers who care for the environment. Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc are the backbone of the blend, and in some years, as in 2025, a generous share of Muscadelle adds floral lift and richness.

Family and history: Clarendelle, Inspired by Haut-Brion, was created by Prince Robert of Luxembourg and named in honour of his great-grandfather Clarence Dillon, the American financier who bought Château Haut-Brion in 1935. It is part of the Domaine Clarence Dillon family of wines, alongside Haut-Brion, La Mission Haut-Brion and Quintus, and benefits from the know-how of a First Growth team that includes Jean-Philippe Delmas, the third generation of his family to make the Domaine's wines.

In the pictures: The entrance to Château Haut-Brion in Pessac (photo: Henry Salomé, 2010, CC BY-SA 4.0). Clarence Dillon, who bought Château Haut-Brion in 1935 (photo: Bain News Service, Library of Congress, public domain).