Pierre Seillan’s passion lies in crafting wines from diverse terroirs, using the same philosophy to capture the unique expressions of Sonoma County, Bordeaux and Tuscany in each vintage. An international Vigneron, Pierre Seillan has spent the past five decades perfecting his micro-cru philosophy to create world-class wines.
Pierre’s career in the wine industry began at his family's estate, Bellevue, in Gascony, France, where he learned to farm Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and several white varieties. Later he focused on Cabernet Franc at Chateau de Targe in the Loire Valley. Pierre then spent two decades in Bordeaux working at several chateaux for Raoul and Jean Quancard. It was there his experience grew while working across eight different appellations and quickly discovered the different nuances between various vineyard sites. This became the backbone of his micro-cru philosophy and allowed Pierre to build the elegant and complex architecture of his wines.
In the mid-1990s Pierre met American wine visionaries Barbara Banke and Jess Jackson. Recognizing the potential of the terroir of the vineyards in Sonoma County, and excited by the freedom to craft his own wines, Pierre quickly accepted Jackson’s offer to join the company as a Vigneron. Together they created Vérité. The first vintage was in 1998, and since then the wines of Vérité have achieved some of the greatest acclaim of any winery in California, including seventeen 100 point scores from Robert Parker Wine Advocate. As the years went on, the partnership flourished and Pierre became an integral part of Jackson Family Wines. In 2001, Pierre crafted the inaugural vintage of Anakota, a single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, inspired by the unique terroir of Knights Valley in Sonoma County. In 2002, Pierre began crafting Arcanum in Tuscany, and returned to France in 2003 when the Jacksons and Seillans purchased the 17th-century Saint-Émilion estate, Château Lassègue, in Bordeaux. Today, Pierre is the Vigneron for Vérité Red Wine, Anakota Cabernet, and Le Coeur Tannat in Sonoma County, California, Château Lassègue Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé, in Bordeaux, and Arcanum and Valadorna Toscana IGT Red Wines, in Tuscany.