Chateau d’Esclans, a magical property, is situated in the heart of Provence, northeast of St. Tropez. With his acquisition of the Château in 2006, Sacha Lichine’s vision was to create the greatest rosés in the world, igniting the “Rosé Renaissance”. Now in its sixteenth vintage, Château d’Esclans is home to Whispering Angel.
Château d’Esclans is located on an exceptional site, on elevated land near the Gorges de Pennafort, twenty five kilometers northwest of the ancient Roman city of Frejus on the Mediterranean coast. The first traces of the château’s site date back to the times of the Gauls during which its location served as a lookout point to spot intruders coming by boat into the Gulf of Frejus.
Born in Bordeaux and educated in America, Sacha Lichine has worked in every aspect of the Wine industry from production to final sale. He began working at his family’s former property, Château Prieuré Lichine and Château Lascombes during the summers of his youth from working the vines to dressing and selling the final product in the estate’s retail shop.
Sacha subsequently established, at the University level in America, a summertime job, between 1978 and 1982; Sacha Lichine International which was a luxury wine tour business to France for educationally hungry Americans that consisted of 3 week trips through all major wine villages and appellations in France as well as dining at the greatest gastronomic Michelin starred Restaurants within these regions.
Bertrand Léon, our Technical Director since 2011, is a graduate of Bordeaux Agriculture, where he studied Viticulture and Oenology. Having grown up in the wine business under the watchful guidance of his father, Patrick Léon, who served as Chateau d’Esclans’ founding Consulting Oenologist, Bertrand grew up participating in various summer jobs at Chateau Mouton Rothschild and Chateau Fieuzal. Today he runs his family property, Chateau Les Trois Croix.
Our passionate and talented Cellar Master, Jean-Claude Neu, a graduate of Lycée Agricole de Hyères, where he studied Viticulture and Oenology has held this position since the beginning in 2006. As the only wine making professional on staff at the time Sacha Lichine launched Château d’Esclans and Whispering Angel, Jean Claude’s enduring tenure speaks for itself.
His exposure to overseeing the day to day management of our Cellars initially under Patrick Léon and then with Bertrand has indoctrinated Jean Claude to uphold all standards and practices that have been put into place by the Léons.