Rencontre with Arnaud Frédéric
At the helm of Château Montrose’s commercial direction since 2022, Arnaud Frédéric embodies a clear vision of his role as a bridge-builder.
Proud of his Médoc roots, a seasoned market expert, and a curious, passionate wine lover, he champions a demanding yet humanistic approach where technique, history, and emotion come together around a single purpose upheld by the Bouygues family: to create meaning.
In a shifting landscape, as Bordeaux strives to reconnect with its consumers, Montrose stands out as a model of coherence balancing controlled power, pioneering environmental commitment, and steadfast loyalty to its terroir.
What does it mean to “pass on” a great wine?
To pass on a great wine is, above all, to understand that we are only passing through. The wine itself transcends us. It embodies a place, a history, a family, a vision. And when you have the privilege of carrying a name like Château Montrose, you have a duty to live up to it.
My role is to make this wine shine, to carry its voice across the world—without ever betraying it. It requires staying true to who we are while adapting to the realities of a global market. We are the link between the work of the land and how the wine will be perceived, received, and understood elsewhere.
How do you maintain the link between excellence, pleasure, and wine consumption?
At Château Montrose, we are deeply convinced that wine is meant to be shared, to spark genuine emotion. Everything begins with an obvious truth: the terroir. It holds the full potential of the wine. Our role is to understand it, reveal it, interpret it, and bring it to light.
We want to build a connection with our consumers, and that connection is rooted in authenticity and in the desire to turn a purchase into a meaningful act. The English have a word for it: a treat. That moment when you choose to indulge in something with real meaning and value. That’s exactly the spirit we embrace.
This also means a selective distribution strategy with a demanding approach that serves the brand and fosters real affinity with the consumer. It’s about a certain precision in taste, an idiosyncrasy, an ideology that echoes what we do.I’m passionate about cars, and I often draw parallels between our work and brands like Porsche. Take the GT4, for example. It’s a Boxster with a GT3 engine, a masterpiece of engineering and lightness, a true demonstration of craftsmanship. And yet, today, these cars have gained so much value that they’re no longer driven. Their price skyrockets the moment they leave the dealership. They become speculative assets, disappearing into garages.
A car like that is meant to be driven, to be lived. Otherwise, it completely misses the point.I bring this up because, with all the necessary nuance, it’s how I sometimes feel about certain wines. They vanish from the real market, locked into a logic of collecting or investing. That’s exactly what we try to avoid. We make sure our wines are opened, enjoyed, appreciated. Wine is a bond, not a relic. Striking that balance isn’t always easy.
In your view, what has been the impact of the Bouygues family since their arrival at Château Montrose?
It has been immense. Martin and Olivier Bouygues brought a clear vision, an ambition matched by the means to achieve it, but also a deeply respectful approach to what already existed. They listened, observed, and invested exactly where it was needed. To ensure continuity, Charlotte Bouygues, Martin Bouygues’ daughter, is present every week and, together with Managing Director Pierre Graffeuille, oversees all of the family’s estates.
Today, the entire vineyard is managed using organic and regenerative farming practices. In my view, they have successfully combined modernism and sustainability with the soul of a great cru.
Can you elaborate on Montrose’s environmental commitment?
Ecology, in the sense of respecting nature, is the starting point. But that’s not enough: the project needs to be rooted in an agricultural system that is both as environmentally friendly as possible and economically viable. Because if we can’t produce wine tomorrow, then what’s the point of any of this?
At Montrose, we strive to integrate all the components of the value chain so that the system is sound, sustainable, and genuinely practical over the long term. That’s why we prefer to speak of sustainable development rather than just ecology.
Château Montrose is often cited for its technical innovations. What are some concrete examples of this approach at the estate?
In light of climate projections for 2070, which anticipate a shortened vine growth cycle that could alter grape balance, Château Montrose is initiating a long-term strategy to preserve the identity of its wines.
In 2024, Montrose established an experimental Cabernet Sauvignon plot, known as the “climate change plot.” Various agronomic approaches are being tested there to slow grape ripening and maintain the current growth cycles. Starting in 2027, the first harvests and vinifications by trial type will play a key role in adapting tomorrow’s vineyard practices. Through this pioneering initiative, Montrose is taking proactive steps to anticipate and guide the evolution of its vineyard, ensuring the quality of its wines for decades to come.
Does this change the way you tell the story of the wine?
Yes, absolutely. A few years ago, we mostly spoke about the vintage, the score, the classification. Today, we also talk about viticulture, agroforestry, biodiversity, or carbon footprint.
It’s about creating meaning and placing wine within a broader system where every action counts. At Montrose, everything is done with this coherence in mind: soil management, water conservation, energy efficiency… It has become a genuine point of distinction, and a shared source of pride.
If you had a magic wand, what would you change?
I would change the perception of our brands. Today, Bordeaux is often reduced to a brand-price equation. I’d like to take people to the heart of what we do to show them how demanding Bordeaux really is, how quality has never been higher. We’re talking about extremely advanced technical work, always in service of the terroir and sustainable development. It’s not technology for technology’s sake. And that needs to be said and shown.
How do you rebuild the connection between Bordeaux and its consumers?
It starts with visits and genuine exchanges. You can sense it immediately when we host professionals or clients from around the world and take the time to share the story, let them taste the wines… Their perspective changes.
Einstein once said: “A person’s world is limited to their knowledge.” If we want to reconnect with the public, it has to begin there: with knowledge, culture, education. Some may dismiss that as idealistic talk, but I truly believe in it.
That connection has been further weakened by commercial shortcuts. We gave in to convenience. The arrival of wine critics was an extraordinary boost for Bordeaux. But there was a downside. Everything became too simple: a good score, a case sold, and no one told the story anymore. No place, no faces, no history.
That went on for decades. Today, we have no choice: the key to winning back hearts is to restore meaning, embrace a clear identity, and rebuild trust through transparency. That’s the path we’ve chosen. We speak about our terraces, our work, our beliefs.
The Harvard Business Review case study on Tiger Woods and Nike left a deep impression on me. When Tiger Woods faced personal turmoil, all his sponsors dropped him, except one: Nike. Why? Because their brand promise wasn’t based on the flawless image of a perfect man. Their message was “Just do it.” It’s about taking action. A transformation. A shift in state.
To me, that parallel is foundational. That’s what made Nike great: its ability to tell stories of resilience, struggle, and belief. It’s not just marketing. It’s a philosophy.
And in wine, we must reclaim that. Reclaim meaning. Reclaim a backbone. It’s not enough to say we want to be a brand, we also have to be able to say what we stand for.
What are those values at Montrose?
At Montrose, values are the foundation, deep roots that define everything. And they are crystal clear: family, perseverance, the land… and innovation. This world is grounded in a story. That of a “pink mountain heather”, when in bloom, hence the name Montrose, given by sailors who loaded barrels and saw that pink patch from afar. Terrestrial poetry, a landscape identity.
Château Montrose was born in 1815. A “youth,” relatively speaking, in a Bordeaux landscape dotted with estates founded in the 17th or even the 13th century. But this youth never stood in the way of recognition. Less than forty years later, in 1855, Montrose was classified as a Second Growth. A meteoric rise, surely a reflection of its exceptional, promising terroir, followed by years of consistent proof of strength and vision.
What makes a wine sentimental? And how is Montrose particularly so?
A sentimental wine moves you intimately, resonates with you in a way you can’t quite explain. Montrose, to me, is exactly that. It’s like walking along a ridge, with the sea on one side and a mountain range on the other. There’s tension but balance between two restrained forces that deeply moves me.
The first time I tasted it, the image that came to mind was an iron hand in a velvet glove. The technical director later told me he vinifies Montrose as if he were holding two lions on leashes without making them roar.
What I love about this wine is that it settles you immediately, like sinking into a well-made armchair. In the mid-palate, the fruit has an astonishing precision: you’re not talking about a family of fruits, you’re biting into the berry. It’s juicy, chiseled, and nothing is unbalanced. And the tannins don’t overpower, they wrap around you, they carry you. There’s never any harshness: everything is lifted by a freshness that borders on mint, with that classic cedar note from Cabernet.
And then the finish… that saline, savory touch that leaves a long-lasting yet always fresh impression. Nothing astringent, nothing drying. A caudalie that feels endless. That’s what fascinates me. This wine is dense, structured, powerful – yet never excessive. It has grace.
A sentimental wine moves you intimately, resonates with you in a way you can’t quite explain. Montrose, to me, is exactly that. It’s like walking along a ridge, with the sea on one side and a mountain range on the other. There’s tension but balance between two restrained forces that deeply moves me.
Can you tell us about the Terrasses, which are essential to Montrose’s identity?
Terrace 4 is something like our elite core. Terrace 3 is one of our most exceptional bedrocks, accounting for over 99% of the Classified Growths on the Left Bank. But Terrace 4 is on another level, so deeply distinctive in terms of complexity and energy.
This discovery was made working with a geologist who helped us lay the groundwork. You have to go back 1.5 million years. Not to a specific moment, but to a series of glaciations and warming periods that made sea levels fall and rise. Each time, the rivers followed, eroding, then depositing sediment. That’s how the terraces were formed.
Then, around 700,000 years ago, a major tectonic event occurred: the formation of the Pyrenees. A massive movement of tectonic plates caused a fracture. As a result, the Saint-Émilion plateau remained elevated, while the Médoc area, including Montrose, sank. That’s what created these stratified terraces. T1 and T2 are very ancient. T3 and T4 are more recent, closer to the estuary.
What’s the difference in soil composition between T3 and T4?
T3 is composed of deep sandy-gravel soils, naturally well-drained, with clay layers in the subsoil.
T4 is the opposite: the top layer is thin, made of sandy gravel, very draining… but it sits on a ferruginous hardpan. Below that, clay retains water. So even during dry periods, water rises through capillarity. It’s a natural water constraint but never a stress. The result? Thick skins, small berries, high polyphenolic concentration… without needing to chase high alcohol levels. That’s the magic.
Is that Montrose’s signature?
We have 45 hectares (111,19 acres) on Terrace 4, which is considerable. Since the 2023 vintage, we’ve designated this part of the historic vineyard as a protected area, this is where the very first Montrose wines were born, on that gravel rise once covered in heather, which gave the estate its name: “Mont Rose.” It’s a return to our roots in many ways.
Then there’s another key factor: the estuary. It regulates the climate. Here, we always benefit from a certain freshness, a unique microclimate. That has a major impact on the vine’s growth cycle, which starts earlier. And for Cabernet Sauvignon, that’s essential: it needs a long growing season.
If you had to summarize your philosophy in one sentence, what would it be?
I’d say: To defend with conviction a wine one deeply respects is to be a committed and demanding custodian.
And above all, it’s essential to remember that the beauty of this profession lies in serving a place, a memory, and those who will carry it forward tomorrow.
Flow of consciousness
Music: La Quête by Jacques Brel
Signature dish: Lamb Navarin
A celebrity/person you’d dream of having dinner with: Matthew McConaughey
Which bottle would you choose for this dinner? Château Montrose 1990
A destination: The mountains of Montana
A belief or mantra: To a valiant heart, nothing is impossible
A simple pleasure: Running
A bad habit: A sweet tooth
Propos recueillis par Marie-Pierre Dardouillet, Cépages communication pour Vignobles et Châteaux
Photos : Marie-Pierre Dardouillet