Domaine du Salut

Domaine du Salut

The Domaine du Salut is a small family-run estate located on the Cérons plateau, on the left bank of the Garonne, south of Bordeaux. The estate and Château Huradin, combined into a single property since 1967, were taken over in early 2015 by Aurélia and Frédéric Caumont, who then left their Parisian life to return to their home region and become winemakers. Their project is based from the start on a rather simple idea: to work a terroir they love and produce accessible wines, made to be drunk and shared without ceremony.

The vineyard covers approximately 16 hectares, divided between 7 hectares of whites, 7 hectares of reds, and 1 hectare dedicated to Cérons sweet wine, the rest being notably dedicated to a premium red cuvée. The soils of the Cérons plateau, predominantly gravelly and clay-limestone, give the wines a particularly fresh and fruity expression. Merlot dominates the red blends, accompanied by Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec, while the whites are primarily based on Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc. The estate has been certified Terra Vitis since 2015, and then committed to organic conversion in 2020; today, the entire range is certified organic. The winemaking remains deliberately simple and low-intervention, with aging primarily in stainless steel and concrete tanks. For the Cérons, Sémillon is hand-harvested in successive selections to choose the grapes affected by noble rot, then aged for a minimum of 18 months in concrete tank.

Today, Aurélia and Frédéric Caumont are still in charge of the Domaine du Salut, accompanied by their team, notably Alexandre. They claim an artisanal and independent approach, with the status of Independent Winemaker, but also a desire to modernize the traditional image of Graves. This involves fruity, round, and fresh wines, more contemporary labels, and a much more relaxed way of talking about wine. Their environmental commitment also goes beyond mere organic certification: since 2023, all the bottles from the estate are designed to be reused, with the removal of capsules, in an effort to reduce waste and to put bottles back into circulation rather than recycling them. The Domaine du Salut thus defends a very current vision of a small Bordeaux estate: organic, family-run, accessible, and deeply attached to its terroir of Cérons.