Ch Jamard Belcour

Franck Despagne traces his lineage in greater Saint-Emilion back to 1665. A baptism ledger in neighboring Saint-Sulpice de Falerens lists that forefather as a ploughman. Beyond that, the historic record is silent, and whether or not the family originated from Spain (d’Espagne, i.e., of Spain) is anyone’s guess. What’s known today is that Franck’s cousin is the seventh-generation Despagne to run Saint-Emilion’s highly regarded Château Grand Corbin Despagne while Franck, who joined his father in 1986 working 30 acres in the proverbial wilderness, doubled those vineyards to just over 60 acres.