n the 16th century, Château Bonnet's vineyards in Grézillac were planted by the de Reynier family, rich merchants from Libourne. These dynamic négociants acquired the "maison noble de Bonnet" circa 1560 and consolidated the vineyards around the manor house. In order to do so, they exchanged numerous plots and bought others that were covered with trees…The land surrounding the owner's house changed significantly over a thirty-year period, and vines replaced trees on nearby slopes. A terroir was born… A century later, in 1653, Bonnet produced about sixty hogsheads of wine. In the early 17th century, Pierre de Reynier increased his wealth, power, and influence thanks to three marriages, each time to a rich heiress. Upon his death in 1650, Pierre de Reynier, Lord of Bonnet, as well as a royal councillor and tax collector for the province of Guyenne, left behind a great deal of debt and family discord. An inheritance dispute broke out between his widow, Catherine de Moneins (who was soon remarried to Jean de Cadoin, lord of the nearby seigneury of Mouchac), and the oldest son from his first marriage, Jacques de Reynier, a royal councillor at the Guyenne Court of Aids. The court cases involved in settling the dispute took more than thirty years to be decided. The Bonnet estate was one of the main stakes in this legal marathon. Eventually, in 1676, Jean-Joseph de Reynier became the full-fledged owner of Bonnet. Several leaseholders followed one another in managing the estate. They did this as if it were their own, as was the custom at the time.