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Château Dassault Saint-Émilion Grand Cru (Grand Cru Classé) 1995

RedFrance1995

By Daniel Min · Tasted 2020-10-17 · Published 2026-09-30 · Updated 2026-09-30

In one paragraphChâteau Dassault 1995 is a red wine from the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé Château Dassault in Bordeaux, a Merlot-led blend with Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The estate was originally Château Couperie; Marcel Dassault bought and renamed it in 1955, and it was promoted to Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé in 1969. According to the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé association, the vineyard covers 24 hectares planted to 70% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. On Vivino the 1995 averages 4.2 from 116 ratings, the label 4.2 from 9,571. Wine-Searcher's aggregate of four critic reviews is 86, with a world average price of US$85 / 750ml (ex-tax, Sep 2026). I wrote that despite its age it was bright and taut, that I enjoyed brick-red wine after a long while, and that it had a great deal of sediment; four stars.

Château Dassault Saint-Émilion Grand Cru (Grand Cru Classé) 1995 bottle — my own photo, 2020.10 — Photo: Daniel Min, 2020.10 (Vivino log)

4.0

Father's rating / 5 ★★★★☆

4.2

Vivino 1995 vintage average (116 ratings)

86 / 100 (Wine-Searcher aggregate of 4 critic reviews)

US$85

World average price (Wine-Searcher)

At a glance

Producer

Château Dassault

Region

France · Bordeaux, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

Grapes

Merlot-led + Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon (current plantings 70/25/5; the 1995 blend is unconfirmed)

Alcohol

13%

Style

Full-bodied, medium acidity (Vivino: Bordeaux Saint-Émilion)

Drinking window (Vivino)

2005–2015

Food pairing

Beef, Lamb, Poultry, Game (deer, venison)

World average price

US$85 / 750ml (Wine-Searcher world average, ex-tax, Sep 2026) · overseas retail US$50.48 / 750ml (one US seller, by request) · magnums US$73–116 per 750ml equivalent (France)

In one line

4.0/5 — lower than Vivino's 4.2 average · world avg price US$85 · A Saint-Émilion château bought in 1955 by the aircraft builder Marcel Dassault.

Wine-Searcher aggregate of 4 critic reviews: 86. Vivino lists critic scores of 85–87 (added Apr 1996, apparently a pre-release assessment) and 15/20 (added Mar 1998), publications not named.

Market note: World average US$85 / 750ml (Wine-Searcher, ex-tax, Sep 2026). One US seller offers a single 750ml by request at US$50.48, and a French seller lists magnums from US$73 per 750ml equivalent (ex-tax) up to US$116 for a six-magnum case (tax incl.). The estate's second wine, Le 'D' de Dassault, is US$36 (88).

Father's note — Daniel Min

Original author of the notes

2020-10-17 4.0 ★★★★☆

oaktobaccoplumblackberryvanillaleatherchocolatecherryearthysmokeblack fruit

“항공,소프트웨어 다쏘시스템즈의 와이너리 궁금해서 먹어봄. 올드 빈티지라 걱정했는데 그랑크뤼라 그런지 쨍쨍함, 오랫만에 벽돌색 맛있게 먹음. 침전물 진짜 많음 조심히 따라야함”

Tidied by Haru

Show original

“oak tobacco plum blackberry vanilla leather chocolate cherry earthy smoke black fruit 항공,소프트웨어 다쏘시스템즈의 와이너리 궁금해서 먹어봄. 올빈이라 걱정했는데 그랑크뤼라그런지 쨍쨍함, 오랫만에 벽돌색 맛있게 먹음. 침전물 진짜많음 조심히 따라야함”

Min Haru Aspiring sommelier Level 1 · Cork

oaktobaccoplumA memory from October, at twenty-two

In the scent column: 'leather, tobacco, coffee filter, brick-red.' What I learned today: an old bottle is stood upright to wait, and then poured without ever being stood upright again until the end.

Tuesday. Since I came in yesterday, one bottle had been standing apart at the end of the counter. It had been standing there since closing last Saturday, Master Seo said. Tonight he opened it. The cork was half soaked and ready to crumble, so he levered it up very slowly. Then, while he poured, he never once set the bottle upright. Only after three glasses did he put it down. About a glass was left at the bottom.

Tilted, the glass was dark red at the centre and brick-coloured at the rim, with an orange cast. Leather, tobacco, cedar, dried plum. An old scent, but on the tongue it was brighter than I expected. The acidity was still alive. And somewhere between the tobacco and a papery smell, an October night of wet coffee filters opened.

Twenty-two, the third Saturday night of October. Dad had been out to dinner with guests. I wasn't there. He came home carrying a cloth-wrapped bottle with about a glass left at the bottom. From the cupboard he took one of Mum's paper coffee filters, set it in a funnel, and slowly strained the last of that bottle into my glass. Black grit piled up in the bottom of the filter like sand. Under the lamp the strained wine was brick-coloured. When I said it smelled like an old bookshelf, Dad held up the filter and said only: this is the years. I don't know the name of the bottle.

I opened the notebook to that date. He was curious about the winery of that family known for aircraft, so he tried it. He had worried because it was an old vintage, but maybe because it's a grand cru, it was bright and taut. It had been a while since he'd enjoyed brick-red like that. And the last line: so much sediment — pour carefully. Four stars. The bottle was Château Dassault 1995. I stuck on the wine-name Post-it. That night, out at dinner, he probably did pour carefully. So the last glass stayed in the bottle, and that glass went through a coffee filter and became my share.

Minjae, arriving late, saw a few black specks at the bottom of his glass and yelped. Master Seo said only that they had been settling for more than thirty years.

After closing, Master Seo didn't pour away the glass left in the bottle; he strained it into a small glass and set it in front of me. I drank a single sip and opened the new notebook to page thirty-five. In the scent column: 'leather, tobacco, coffee filter, brick-red.' What I learned today: an old bottle is stood upright to wait, and then poured without ever being stood upright again until the end.

Haru — Tuesday: the bottle that had stood since Saturday. At the rim of the glass, brick-red with an orange cast. — **Haru** Tuesday: the bottle that had stood since Saturday. At the rim of the glass, brick-red with an orange cast.

What this wine is

In 1955 Marcel Dassault, who built aeroplanes, bought Château Couperie in Saint-Émilion. Wine Folly's Bordeaux guide says he bought it 'on a stroke of heart'. The château soon took its owner's surname — the name of a family that builds fighter jets and business aircraft, on a wine bottle. That's why Dad's note remembered it as 'the aviation and software company's winery'. Strictly speaking, it belongs to the Dassault family, which controls those companies.

Fourteen years later, in 1969, Château Dassault was promoted to Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé (Wine Folly, the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé association). The Saint-Émilion classification is revised periodically, and Dassault has held its place.

According to the association, the vineyard covers 24 hectares of sandy clay and clayey sand over Fronsac molasse, planted to 70% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. And 1995 matters here: that year Laurent Dassault and Laurence Brun took over the management and launched the second wine, 'D de Dassault'. The bottle Dad drank was, in effect, the new team's first vintage. In 2014 the family's wine holdings were brought together as Dassault Wine Estates.

Haru — Twenty-two, the third Saturday night of October. Dad strained the last glass in the bottle through Mum's coffee filter. — **Haru** Twenty-two, the third Saturday night of October. Dad strained the last glass in the bottle through Mum's coffee filter.

What the world says

The four critic reviews gathered on Wine-Searcher aggregate to 86. Vivino lists a pre-release 85–87 added in April 1996 and a 15/20 added in March 1998. Not high scores.

But the people who drank it rate it higher. On Vivino the 1995 averages 4.2 from 116 ratings: 21 fives, 74 fours, 18 threes, 2 twos and one 1. The label as a whole averages 4.2 from 9,571. Vivino's suggested window, 2005–2015, is long past, yet reviews of bottles opened late are still kind.

"Dark red with orange-brown rim... Balanced structure with integrated tannins." — Vivino review, Dec 2016, 4 stars

Flavour keywords: oak 476 mentions (oak 155, tobacco 92, vanilla 75), black fruit 415, earth and leather 240 (leather 77). Structure: intensity 4.3, tannin 3.6, acidity 3.4.

The world average price is US$85 / 750ml (Wine-Searcher, ex-tax, Sep 2026).

Minjae — Black specks at the bottom of his glass freeze Minjae. 'It's been settling for over thirty years.' — **Minjae** Black specks at the bottom of his glass freeze Minjae. 'It's been settling for over thirty years.'

How I drank it

October 17, 2020, 4 stars. I logged four bottles that day: René Lequin-Colin's Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru 2016 (4.5), Marc Morey's Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru En Virondot 2017 (4), Castell d'Encus's Ekam Essència 2018 (4), and this Dassault 1995.

My note said: curious about the winery of the Dassault family, known for aviation and software, I tried it. I'd worried because it was an old vintage, but perhaps because it's a grand cru, it was bright and taut. It had been a while since I'd enjoyed brick-red like that. There is a lot of sediment — pour carefully.

My four stars sit above the critics' 86 and almost level with the community's 4.2. The critics saw a young wine around release; I drank a wine that had waited twenty-five years. In between came the brick colour, the leather and tobacco, while the acidity stayed. Even between two white Burgundies that day, this bottle's old red is what stayed clearest.

Haru — After closing: the last glass left in the bottle. Master Seo strained it and set it in front of Haru. — **Haru** After closing: the last glass left in the bottle. Master Seo strained it and set it in front of Haru.

Where this wine shows up

History Marcel Dassault buys Château Couperie · 1955

In 1955 Marcel Dassault bought Château Couperie in Saint-Émilion and renamed it Château Dassault. In 1969 it was promoted to Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé.

Wine Folly Bordeaux Guide — Château Dassault · AGCCSE — Château Dassault

Artwork and stills are not reproduced for copyright reasons; scenes are summarised.

Vivino community data

1995 vintage rating distribution (116 ratings, average 4.2)

5★		21 (18%)
4★		74 (64%)
3★		18 (16%)
2★		2 (2%)
1★		1 (1%)

Most-mentioned aromas

Family	Mentions	Top keywords
Oak	476	oak 155 · tobacco 92 · vanilla 75 · chocolate 44 · cedar 21
Black fruit	415	blackberry 95 · plum 94 · black fruit 53 · blackcurrant 40 · cassis 30
Earth & leather	240	leather 77 · earthy 46 · smoke 41 · graphite 20 · mushroom 13
Red fruit	129	cherry 50 · red fruit 29 · raspberry 20 · strawberry 12 · red cherry 6
Spice	106	licorice 26 · pepper 26 · mint 11 · savory 7 · dried herbs 6

Structure: Acidity 3.4/5 · Intensity 4.3/5 · Tannin 3.6/5 · Sweetness 1.6/5

Average by vintage (all vintages: 9571 ratings, average 4.2)

Vintage	Average	Ratings
1982	4.2	34
1985	4.1	31
1986	4.1	34
1989	4	61
1990	4.1	34
1993	4.2	33
1994	4.1	115
1995	4.2	116
1996	4	113
1997	4.1	52
1998	4.1	129
1999	4.2	147
2000	4.3	298
2001	4.1	78
2003	4.3	171
2004	4.3	196
2005	4.3	260
2006	4	341
2007	4.1	384
2008	4	452
2009	4.2	246
2010	4.2	634
2011	4.2	839
2012	4.1	608
2013	4	316
2014	4.2	742
2015	4.3	1136
2016	4.3	788
2018	4.2	286
2019	4.2	216
2020	4	136
2022	4	76

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Frequently asked questions

What kind of wine is Château Dassault?

A Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé château in Bordeaux, bought and renamed by Marcel Dassault in 1955 and classified in 1969. A Merlot-led blend. The 1995 averages 4.2 on Vivino (116 ratings) with a Wine-Searcher critic aggregate of 86.

How much does it cost?

Wine-Searcher's world average is US$85 per 750ml (ex-tax, Sep 2026). One US seller lists a 750ml at US$50.48 (by request), and magnums are offered in France at US$73–116 per 750ml equivalent.

What food goes with it?

The Vivino community suggests beef, lamb, poultry and game such as venison. Reviewers mention roast goose and elk as good matches.

How do you handle the sediment in an old Bordeaux?

Stand the bottle upright for a day or two so the sediment settles, then pour slowly in one motion without tipping the bottle back upright, stopping when dark grit reaches the neck. Some decant it, or strain the last portion.

Links & sources

View on Vivino · Prices on Wine-Searcher

Château Dassault Saint-Émilion Grand Cru (Grand Cru Classé) 1995

At a glance

In one line

Father's note — Daniel Min

What this wine is

What the world says

How I drank it

Where this wine shows up

Vivino community data

1995 vintage rating distribution (116 ratings, average 4.2)

Most-mentioned aromas

Average by vintage (all vintages: 9571 ratings, average 4.2)

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