Castera today

Thomas C. Press, son of Carl E. Press, took over management of the estate in 2008. He has breathed a new dynamic into Château Castera, with emphasis on quality control measures (the selection of vineyard plots and meticulous sorting of the grapes) and on enhancement of the château’s already fine reputation.

The final touch was the renovation of the tower in 2011 which now houses the exhibition of the estate’s private archives.

Distributed in over twenty countries around the world, Château Castera is one of the leading “Crus Bourgeois”.

1986 :
The renaissance of Castera

After a difficult period in the late 19th century, largely due to the drop in the wine market and the phylloxera crisis, the Verthamon family was obliged to sell Château Castera.
Monsieur Destanque the new owner, increased sales and then sold the estate in 1922 to Monsieur Degonde, whose family remained owner of Château Castera for nearly 50 years.

In the early 1970s, the négociant firm of Alexis Lichine took over the estate and gave it a wide international audience.

In 1986, Carl E. Press (father of the current owner) and Dieter Tondera jointly acquired Château Castera from Alexis Lichine.
They undertook a large-scale renovation and made significant investments to give to Château Castera a new life.

The Verthamon family

In the 18th century, the race to plant vines in the Médoc began in earnest. The aristocrats and bourgeois of Bordeaux bought properties and built themselves châteaux. According to the archives, Marie-Anne de Verthamon inherited the château from her husband in 1760.
Her nephew, Martial Maurice de Verthamon consolidated the vineyard as we know it today.

The phylloxera crisis had a devastating effect on Bordeaux and put an end to the Verthamon dynasty. The fame of the château was already assured, cited in the first edition of “Bordeaux and its wines” by Charles Cocks, published in 1850. The owners who followed left the memories of men who had a love of the place, real winegrowers who had succumbed to the charms of Castera.
The château was admitted to the ranks of the Crus Bourgeois on the first classification in 1932.

Marquis de Verthamon

A long and rich history

Château Castera has a rich past, dating back to the Middle Ages. The origin of the estate dates from feudal times..

Looking at the majestic château, it is obvious that the men and women who lived here have left part of their soul.

Some of the more famous owners of Château Castera have been: Family d’Arsac (one of the largest exporters of wine during the 14th century); Étienne de La Boétie (famous humanist, councillor at the Bordeaux Parliament, friend of Michel de Montaigne, whose brother, Thomas de Montaigne, was also an owner of Castera); and the Marquis de Verthamon.
All contributed to the development of the estate.

Lovers of literature, trade, and viticulture, all of these owners enabled Château Castera to endure the centuries in good condition.