Chateau Branaire-Ducru's 120 acres is located in the St. Julien region of France and has such famous neighbors as Cheateau Gruaud-Larose, Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou and Chateau Beychevelle. The name, given by the former owner Monsieur Ducru, means "beautiful pebbles". One of the main features of the vineyard is its richness in pebbles which contribute to the greatness of so many wines of the Medoc. Just before the war, the vineyard became run down and many Bordeaux critics felt it no longer deserved its rank as a Second Growth. During the Medoc Classification of 1855, the Chateau was rated as a Fourth Growth. In 1942 the Borie family purchased the vineyard completely revamped the vineyard and it began receiving top ratings amongst the Second Growths. Successive generations of the Borie family oversee all winemaking operations.

Saint Julien first became famous for its Bordeaux wine back in the 17th century. At that time, St Julien was in the stage of development, to become a major Bordeaux wine producing appellation in the Left Bank when the entire area of the Medoc was discovered and populated by wealthy aristocrats. Coinciding with creating the famous vineyards we know today, the new landowners quickly began erecting massive showpiece chateaux throughout the region. Many of the original Saint Julien estates are still standing today and can be easily noticed while driving down the famous D2 highway.