Jean-Francois de Pontet had made a career at Versailles; very much in court, he had occupied the office of Grand Ecuyer of Louis XV. Returning to Guyenne, he became Governor of the Médoc. In 1705, he bought a few acres of land north of the village of Pauillac to create a vineyard. A few years later, he adds parcels to the place called Canet. As was the custom at the time, he associates his name with that of the Medocan land to give his identity to the estate. A century later, the castle Pontet-Canet thrives and enters the big leagues by becoming Grand Cru Classé in the famous classification of 1855 ordered by the Emperor Napoleon III.

In 1865, the domain changes hands for the first time in becoming the property of Herman Cruse, wine merchant. The Cruse family will keep the estate for 110 years, until 1975, when it will be bought by Guy Tesseron, a cognac trader. In nearly three centuries, Château Pontet-Canet has only known three owners, three families ... A singularity in the Médoc.


To transmit, to inscribe the history of the Château Pontet-Canet in the duration ... It is the declared ambition of the family. Today, the descendants of Guy Tesseron, his son Alfred and his grandchildren Melanie and Philippine, daughters of Gerard, own the estate. Together, they look in the same direction. Alfred shares and transmits to Melanie the traditions of the estate, his look at the culture of the vineyard and his passion for wine. The future is assured ...

The recent history of the castle led Pontet-Canet to the summit of Bordeaux wines. It illustrates a shared state of mind, a particular sensitivity and the quiet will of sustainability of the Tesseron family.