Hand Over the Keys: Brane-Cantenac 1928-2023

BY
NEAL MARTIN | SEPTEMBER 17, 2025

As your
career as a wine writer progresses, you inevitably begin to repeat tastings that
you previously assumed were once-in-a-lifetime events. But unlike rereading a novel or rewatching a film,
revisiting a wine is just as thrilling every time. The endorphins keep
rushing. Occasionally, somebody enquires whether I get bored doing the job. I
habitually laugh at the incomprehensibility of that notion. If there is ever a
pang of ennui, then it is probably time to quit—in case you feel like sending
off your CV to Vinous to fill a possible Neal-shaped vacancy, I wouldn’t
bother. Thus, even though I have conducted several verticals of Château
Brane-Cantenac over the year—including all the vintages that made up this latest
voyage through time—trust me when I write that every wine in this tasting was
just as fascinating as the first time, irrespective of quality. It offered a chance
to juxtapose vintages, to examine and relate changes in the wines’ evolution,
to assess the wines with an additional dimension: time. &nbsp;For
background information, I refer readers to my <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/long-distance-runner-brane-cantenac-1924-2015-jan-2019">previous article</a>, though I’ll present an
adumbrated history of Brane-Cantenac.The
château name comes from Jacques-Maxime de Brane, who renamed his estate in
Margaux to avoid confusion with Brane-Mouton. De Brane had advocated the
planting of Cabernet Sauvignon in the Médoc, which in retrospect was not <a target="_blank">a bad decision</a>. Hence his dubbing as “the Napoleon of
the Vineyards.” The centenary dates from a deed of sale signed by Léonce Récapet—whose
family descended from millers and wine growers—founding a well-known
distillery, Distillerie Moderne. Récapet grew up in Branne and married
Emma Thibaud. The couple started buying various properties beginning in 1897, and
on their shopping list in 1925 was Brane-Cantenac, as well as half the shares
of Château Margaux. 





Their
daughter, Denise, married the François Lurton, a scion of the well-known
merchant family. Denise passed away in 1934, leaving François to raise their
four children at Château Bonnet, so the daily running of Brane-Cantenac was
left to his brother-in-law, Henri Héoche-Duval. Duval took their son, Lucien Lurton,
under his wing, dispensing valuable knowledge about running a major wine estate.
Beginning in 1949, Lucien Lurton spent two years in America, where he met André
Tchelistcheff, one of the forefathers of modern winemaking. Virtually penniless,
Lurton travelled to Mexico and then down to Chile. Upon inheriting
Brane-Cantenac when he returned to France in 1954, Lurton married Marie-Jeanne
Duvoisin, who bore him no less than 11 children. Despite having to contend with
the devastating 1956 frosts, Lurton expanded the family estates with
acquisitions of Durfort-Vivens and Climens inter alia. To quote the booklet
provided at this tasting, Lucien “believed in Brane at a time when its future
was uncertain.”

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757621820509-Henri+Lurton_Vinous.jpg">Proprietor Henri Lurton, presiding over the lunch that
broached older vintages, representing his father and grandfather.

His
son, Henri Lurton, was born in 1961 and started working across the family’s
Médoc estates in 1986. Henri inherited Brane-Cantenac on June 11, 1992, when his
father divided the portfolio of properties. In September that year, Lucien left
Bordeaux to spend six months abroad and left his son the keys to run the estate.
Though Brane-Cantenac is one of the most auspicious châteaux owned by the
Lurtons, Henri Lurton had to contend with poor vintages in 1992, 1993 and 1994.
It was not really until 1995 that he could show his winemaking chops. For
further developments undertaken by Lurton, I encourage readers to peruse the
tasting notes, where I have embroidered developments and milestones over the
last three decades.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757621837028-bottle+line+up_Vinous.JPG">This
tasting broached all 32 bottled vintages of Brane-Cantenac under Lurton’s reign
from 1992 to 2023. Over lunch, older vintages <a target="_blank">were
fetched</a> from the cellar—all the way back to the 1928.

With
respect to the morning tasting of recent vintages, the wines vindicated <a target="_blank">previous</a> assessments with few surprises. The standout was
the stellar 2022 Brane-Cantenac. Tasting vintages chronologically, I
felt that <a target="_blank">previous</a> high points such as the 1995,
2000, 2010, 2016 and 2019 culminate in this stellar wine. The 2022 completely earned
the lofty score that I gave before. If anything, I actually under-scored it.
The 2022 is blessed with filigree tannins and a symmetry that I once assumed
unattainable from this estate, however much I admire it. I know that Bordeaux
is not at the top of most shopping lists <a target="_blank">at the moment</a>,
but you should make an exception for this.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757621855866-Brane+Cantenac+1945_Vinous.JPG">The stunning 1945 Brane-Cantenac. Notice the paler-coloured
glass, as standard glass continued to be in short supply after the war.

Among
the older vintages, once again, the highlight was unanimous. The 1945
Brane-Cantenac is another to add to the canon of magical année de
victoire Bordeaux wines. Even if you disentangle it from historical
significance, the 1945s seem immortal. So many wines transcended themselves in
that year, each with its own glowing halo, just like this Margaux. For three or
four minutes, the 1945 strangely felt a little oaky. I wondered if it had
undergone a longer élevage, given that some wines <a target="_blank">were
not bottled</a> until orders came in, orders that were even thinner on the
ground during that period of post-war austerity than they are today. Then, the
1945 lit up and shone like a polished ruby, blessed with otherworldly purity of
fruit and life-affirming intensity, a precision that was a wonder to behold.
Incredible. It shaded the 1928 and 1961, both remarkable wines, the former
still with body and density that remains intact after almost a century.
(Incidentally, Henri Lurton mentioned that he would have poured a 1925, but
there is not a single bottle remaining from this meagre season.)

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757621875526-brane+cantenac+family_Vinous.JPG">Posing outside the château, Henri Lurton with his children.

This
tasting reaffirmed my admiration for Brane-Cantenac. The château represents a
distinctive and classical style that borrows Pauillac structure and fuses it
with Margaux finesse. It is not and never has been a crowd-pleaser. Famously,
Robert Parker was not the greatest fan of Brane-Cantenac, and he had a frosty
relationship with Lucien Lurton. Brane-Cantenac requires time to show its true
mettle, preferably at least a decade. Major investments overseen by Henri
Lurton, including the rebuilding of a gravity-fed winery, the introduction of
optical sorting and R’Pulse during extraction, but most of all, limiting
the Grand Vin to vines cultivated solely on Terrace IV, engender a superior Margaux
than the one produced at the outset of Lurton’s tenure. For sure, his three
sons and daughter, who were all present for this tasting, will one day take
charge of an estate that has been brought to its full potential. Hopefully,
they will not have to open their account with a dismal growing season like
1992. But Henri Lurton’s reign is far from over. I strongly suspect there are
more great wines to come before he gathers his kids, announces he is going away
for six months and hands over the keys.© 2025, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or redistributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.<hr> You Might Also Enjoy<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/long-distance-runner-brane-cantenac-1924-2015-jan-2019">Long Distance Runner: Brane-Cantenac 1924-2015</a>, Neal Martin, January 2019<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/bordeaux-2015-at-age-ten-jun-2025">Bordeaux 2015 At Age Ten</a>, Neal Martin, June 2025<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/event-horizon-bordeaux-2024-primeur-may-2025">Event Horizon: Bordeaux 2024 Primeur</a>, Neal Martin, May 2025<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/intellect-senses-bordeaux-with-time-mar-2025">Intellect &amp; Senses: Bordeaux With Time</a>, Neal Martin, March 2025<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/a-place-beyond-praise-bordeaux-2022-feb-2025"></a><a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/a-place-beyond-praise-bordeaux-2022-feb-2025">A Place Beyond Praise: Bordeaux 2022</a>, Neal Martin, February 2025

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