he BELLEFONT-BELCIER estate is very old and its history can be traced back to the XVII century. BELCIER is the name of an important family belonging to the nobility of Bordeaux and Libourne. Towards the end of the XVIII century Count Louis François de Belcier actually founded the vineyard, ideally situated on the southern slope of Saint-Émilion, between PAVIE and LARCIS-DUCASSE. Then in 1803, on this magnificent site, he built the château which he named ‘BELLEFONT’, or ‘Belle Fontaine’ (Beautiful Fountain), because of the numerous springs nearby, rising from the chalky-clay slope. Despite difficult periods, Count Belcier’s inheritors kept the château until 1871. Immediately after the sale and multiple successions, in 1889, the château passed into the hands of the FAURE family. Pierre FAURE, a brilliant agricultural engineer and author of many drainage works and other agricultural improvements, had the famous circular vat built, intact since its identification and today one of the jewels of this property. His brother, Jean-Louis, professor at the Faculty of Medicine, renowned surgeon in the hospitals of Paris and Commander of the Legion of Honour, dedicated himself, like his brother, to this quality mission.
It was at this time that the vineyard became one of the guiding lights of the Bordeaux region, receiving many awards (the unique Gold Medal awarded by the Ministry for Agriculture to the Bordeaux wines, at the General Agriculture Competition, Paris, 1892). The LABUSQUIÈRE family, successors of the FAURE, pursued the BELLEFONT-BELCIER wine-growing tradition and, in 1994, they handed it over to the current proprietors. Today, BELLEFONT-BELCIER belongs to three associates, Jacques BERREBI, Alain LAGUILLAUMIE and Dominique HEBRARD. "Since 1994, the vineyard and its outhouses have been considerably renovated with a view to raising the property to the status of the Great Classified Vintages of Saint-Émilion.".