Chateau Fonplegade is located close to the south, east portion of St. Emilion village. What we know of as Chateau Fonplegade today, is one of the oldest vineyards in Saint Emilion.
The name Fonplegade was inspired by the terroir. Fonplegade means full or bent fountain. It was derived from the clay terroir, which supports numerous, small, running springs in various bent shapes that are located on the estate.
After a complete and very, expensive renovation of the Chateau Fonplegade chateau, cellars and wine making facilities, they also replanted large portions of the vineyards. Next, the Adams family started taking a different approach with their vineyard management techniques. They began a biodynamic, farming program starting with the 2009 vintage.
The 18.5 hectare St. Emilion vineyard of Chateau Fonplegade is planted to 95% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc . The remaining Cabernet Sauvignon vines were removed in 2010. The goal is to slowly increase the amount of Cabernet Franc planted in the vineyard to as much as 20% of the plantings over time. The terroir is limestone and clay soils. On average, the vines are 25 years of age. They have old vines, some of which date back to an average of 50 years of age.