France · Bordeaux

Chateau Pavie Decesse

Chateau Pavie Decesse is a Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé estate on the limestone plateau, covering approximately 9.5 hectares adjacent to the grand vin Chateau Pavie. Both properties are owned by Gérard and Chantal Perse, acquired in 1997, who transformed them with dramatic interventions: lower yields, late harvests, micro-oxygenation, and heavy new-oak regimes. The vineyard is planted predominantly to Merlot (approximately 80%) with Cabernet Franc on pure limestone plateau soils — among Saint-Émilion's most sought-after terroir. The Perse winemaking style attracted Parker scores reaching the mid-to-high 90s across the 2000s, including 98 points for the 2005, while simultaneously dividing classical Bordeaux opinion. The estate's classification history is turbulent: promoted in the 2012 Saint-Émilion reclassification, then removed amid legal disputes, and restored in the most recent review — a controversy that paradoxically sustained collector attention. At auction, Pavie Decesse averages $132 per bottle across 237 lots with peaks to $1,107, the latter largely for top vintages in large formats. The 2005, 2009, 2010, and 2015 are the primary secondary market anchors. The estate offers collectors right-bank limestone plateau terroir with Parker-era credentials at a notable discount to Pavie itself. Under Perse's continued ownership, quality has remained consistent, with recent vintages from 2015 and 2018 representing the clearest evidence of the modern house style.