Pénélope Godefroy
France
Pénélope's Wines
- France
- 1 wine
- 1 style
Leading lady of Right Bank Bordeaux
- Pénélope landed a research and development role at THE Château Latour – one of Bordeaux’s First Growth estates – after an international wine education. She was a cellar hand for Craggy Range (New Zealand) and worked her way up to Assistant Winemaker at Tenuta Argentiera (Italy), before returning to her beloved France.
- At Château Latour, she took part in the adventure of storied French estates like Northern Rhône’s Château-Grillet and Burgundy’s Domaine d'Eugénie – honing her winegrowing and winemaking skills to craft iconic reds and whites.
- She thought she’d made it big then, but these days, she’s the Head Winemaker at Château Siaurac in Bordeaux’s Lalande-de-Pomerol – an estate vineyard in the continuity of the famous plateau of Pomerol. It’s a new peak – especially now that she can share the best Right Bank wines for Angels to enjoy.
Pénélope Godefroy's Story
As a college student in Paris, Pénélope studied biology. However, she was drawn to winemaking because she’s always been interested in both art and science. Her passion would lead her to the famed L'institut Agro Montpellier in France, where she majored in Viticulture and Enology.
Pénélope’s first role in the wine industry took her to Craggy Range Winery in New Zealand, where she worked as a cellar hand in 2004. After that stint, Pénélope headed back to the Northern Hemisphere to Tenuta Argentiera in Italy as Assistant Winemaker. These two roles prepared her for a dream opportunity in 2007 – Research and Development Manager for Bordeaux’s famous Left Bank First Growth estate, Château Latour. During her 7 years there, Pénélope helped improve quality and launch biodynamic farming at Latour’s Domaine d'Eugénie in Vosne-Romanée, Burgundy – and oversaw Château-Grillet – the sole estate in Château-Grillet AOC in the Northern Rhône. In 2014, Pénélope became Head Winemaker and Technical Manager at Château Siaurac in Bordeaux’s Lalande-de-Pomerol, where she is today.
As a winemaker, Pénélope strives to create the best expression of Lalande-de-Pomerol terroir, which means very precise work in the vineyard, natural winegrowing (organic fertilization and no pesticides) and plot selection during harvest to pick at the right ripeness. She enjoys the seasonal rhythm of winemaking and being involved in the hands-on, day-to-day decisions like the ever-changing climate and weather conditions.
Pénélope’s winemaking techniques include foot stomping the grapes and manual pumpovers. “I like the smells, the textures, the warmth; It's a very organic experience,” shared Pénélope. “All of these steps lead to very little intervention in the cellar and very elegant wines, with a perfect balance between the fruit expression and structure.”
Pénélope’s favorite variety is Cabernet Franc. “I love its floral notes, freshness and elegance,” she said. She also enjoys Malbec due to its acidity and spicy notes like pepper and licorice.
Pénélope is excited to be a part of the Naked Wines community. “I feel close and connected,” she said. “I hope I will make Angels happy with a wine they enjoy, while sharing my winemaking experiences with them.
