Château Clarke takes its name from the Irish family who purchased the estate in 1771, and today stands as a benchmark for quality in the Listrac-Médoc appellation. One of the rare estates in the Médoc to produce a white wine, it farms 135 acres of limestone and clay soils—an atypical terroir for the left bank that lends resilience and distinctive minerality. The grapes for Le Merle Blanc come from 30-year-old vines pruned using a double Guyot training system and managed with natural grass cover to promote biodiversity and soil health. The estate holds HVE Level 3 and ISO 14001 certifications.

Le Merle Blanc is part of the Château’s heritage, dating back to 1890. Once accounting for nearly a quarter of the estate’s total production, the wine was revived by Baron Edmond de Rothschild after he acquired the property in 1973. The 2023 vintage was harvested by hand and vinified with direct pressing, cold settling, fermentation, and maturation on the lees—with each batch treated by gravity and winemaking adapted individually per lot.

The 2023 Le Merle Blanc offers intense aromas of exotic fruits and juicy white pear; upon aeration, its complexity deepens with hints of flint and white flowers. On the palate it is ample and flavorful, carried by a beautiful acidic framework that ensures balance and freshness through the finish, culminating in subtle woody notes that add richness and elegance. Decanter awarded 94 points, calling it “an exemplary dry white from the Médoc” with superior precision and mid-palate juiciness. James Suckling (91 pts) noted green gooseberries and lime on the nose followed by a crisp, bone-dry palate with bright, chalky acidity.