The modern Brane-Cantenac is knocking at the door of ‘super-second’ status. This must be one of the best value wines at this exalted level. Centred on the ‘croupe de Brane’ terroir, the 75 hectares of vineyards are at around 22 metres above sea level, one of the most elevated sites in this low-lying region. The gravel soils run very deep here, in some places 12m below the surface. The vineyard is planted to planted to 55%Cabernet Sauvignon, 39%Merlot, 4.5% Cabernet Franc, 1% PetitVerdot and 0.5% Carmenere.

Henri Lurton purchased the estate in 1992 and after a difficult period in the 1990s he found success with an excellent run of vintages from 2000 onwards, focusing on terroir at a time when some estates were making increasingly extracted and oaked wines. The signature of the wines is a floral nose and an elegance that is quintessentially Margaux.