Jonathan Maltus is the second-largest landowner in St Emilion (with 65ha of vineyard he’s just behind Alain Vauthier of Ausone). He fell into winemaking almost by accident; having sold his oil and gas business for £1.5m in the early 1990s he found himself at a loose end, learnt how to make wine and decided to buy Château Teyssier in Vignonet, the unfashionable end of St Emilion. In 1996 he bought the three hectares that is now Le Dôme in the middle of some of the world’s most expensive vineland – it’s next door to Château Angelus. Fast-forward 30 years and he’s an OBE and Le Dôme has a splendid €14m, Norman Foster-designed home. Jane Anson, among other key critics, considers its 2021 one of the best wines of that vintage. In Bordeaux Maltus produces a dozen wines, with the Cabernet Franc-dominant Le Dôme, Château Teyssier, La Forge, and Vieux Château Mazerat at the top of the pyramid. He also makes wine in the Napa Valley under his World’s End label, and runs the JCP Maltus Domaines et Châteaux negociant business.
How long have you been making wine?
32 years
What inspired you to become a winemaker?
I used to be in the project management business in oil and gas. When I sold my companies to a Swiss quoted company I had to agree to a four-year restraint of trade. Arriving in Cahors, I met an English vigneron at a dinner party. He was having difficulty selling his wine and I said I would help him. The first company I called took half of his production, so, thinking that this was an easy business, I said I would work for him for a year for free if he taught me how do make wine. Two vintages later I ended up in Bordeaux.
What would you be doing now if you weren’t making wine?
I would attempt to identify as a billionaire.
Whom do you most admire of the great winemakers of the past and present?
Jacques Thienpont, who influenced a number of ‘garagistes’ to emulate the success that he had with his individual Burgundian-inspired winemaking at Le Pin. Alain Vauthier [of Ausone], who is helped by the best terroir in Saint Emilion, and Hubert de Board [of Angélus] who has been an inspiration to many winemakers on how to market internationally a brand that shines above the classification [Angélus withdrew from the St-Emilion Classification in 2022]
Which do you think is the most underrated wine region?
Picpoul – the price is excellent for the wine.
If you could make wine anywhere in the world (apart from St Emilion and Napa), where would it be?
Bolgheri, Italy, but really anywhere but Burgundy because both Neil White, my head winemaker, and I are firm believers in the ABP [Anything But Pinot] movement.
Which of your achievements are you most proud of?
Getting 100 points from Robert Parker in the Wine Advocate [for Le Dôme 2010], and the resulting OBE [in 2016] (I believe I am the only British person to have been awarded OBE for winemaking).
What would you have done differently?
I would not have tried to run three properties on three continents during the financial crash of 2008/9. Something had to go, and that ended up being Barossa in Australia, where we had a winery with 120 acres [50ha], including a vineyard that used to go into Grange. We now make wine in France and the USA.
What qualities do you most admire in a person?
Loyalty and ambition.
What is your main fault?
I sometimes take life too seriously; I don’t stop to smell the roses.
What’s your motto?
If you see a chance, take it.
What’s your favourite restaurant?
In France, Caffé Cuisine in Branne, near Saint Emilion. In the UK, Manicomio in Chelsea, London.
