Don't be fooled by its lack of a proper ranking, Château La Louviere has been producing quality wine in Pessac-Leognan for the past two decades -- and at affordable prices too. La Louviere's recent resurgence can be linked to current owner, Andre Lurton. He purchased the estate, better yet, rescued it, in 1965, from a state of disrepair, and today offers several wines, among them a stylish, fresh, aromatically precise and very reasonably priced wine from mostly Sauvignon Blanc.

Lurton produces a red wine here too, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. 48 hectares in Pessac are planted to these varieties, while another 13.5 hectares are planted to 85% Sauvignon Blanc and 15% Semillon. The second wines, one white, one red, are both bottled under L de Louviere.