Domaine de Chevalier 2020

Exactly as you hope to find a great Bordeaux at this stage, still very much firm in its tannic structure, rippled with clear cinammon, turmeric and black pepper notes alongside creamy cassis, blackberry, bilberry, cigar box, smoked earth. A brilliant Chevalier. 38hl/h yield.

Full bottle 1,360 g, Cask sample taken 6 April. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot.Spicy nose. Pretty saline and mineral on the palate – non flashy but with lots locked in there. And no shortage at all of tannin but it's ripe enough. Very much a work in progress but with a certain lusciousness of embryonic fruit. 13.5%Drink 2030 – 2050

Tasted blind. Black core with crimson rim. Smells ripe, sweet and seductive, lifted by a leafy cassis note. Firm, rich, finely dry texture, all juicy and fresh at the core. Bright and lively and yet big. All to play for. 2028 – 2037.

(65% CS, 27% M, 5% PV, 3% CF; 38hl/ha; 13.5% ABV; 35% new)Dense, tight, closed at present, but mineral, persistent, and fine to smell; rich but restrained, vital in acidity, very fine in tannin; a refined, poised, classy wine, long across the palate, packed with fresh, ripe red fruit, subtly infused with gravel aromas, graceful and very persistent. Another very fine Domaine de Chevalier red. 2028–50+.

The 2020 Domaine de Chevalier has a concentrated, well-defined bouquet with blackberry, raspberry, tobacco, hickory and wild hedgerow. Touches of pressed iris flower surface with aeration. Generous, yet it maintains ample delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, white pepper and touches of tobacco, very fine depth, focused and perhaps a little more muscular than other vintages with a sapid finish that is surprising given the growing season. Superb.

The 2020 Domaine de Chevalier, which was cropped at 38hl/ha, is deep purple with glints of blue. The bouquet is very clean, precise and focused, not dissimilar to the impressive Malartic Lagravière that I tasted alongside, touches of wet granite and truffle emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins. This Domaine de Chevalier has a deeply impressive structure counterbalanced by equally impressive freshness and elegance, fanning out wonderfully on the finish, which is very persistent. Just a shade off the outstanding 2019... perhaps. 2026 - 2058

Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, the 2020 Domaine de Chevalier comes skipping out of the glass with energetic scents of ripe red and black currants, fresh blackberries and boysenberries, plus nuances of wild sage, cloves and cedar with a waft of lavender. The medium to full-bodied palate surprises and delights with an unexpected richness and depth that remains locked away on the nose, revealing layers of fragrant earth and floral notions framed by fantastic freshness and firm, finely grained tannins, finishing with the most gorgeous, long-lingering perfume. Drink 2026-2053.

Exactly as you hope to find a great Bordeaux at this stage, still very much firm in its tannic structure, rippled with clear cinammon, turmeric and black pepper notes alongside creamy cassis, blackberry, bilberry, cigar box, smoked earth. A brilliant Chevalier. 38hl/h yield.

Concentrated ruby red colour, a little subdued on the nose, built with structure and power, concentrated and should age well. Classical, powerful, not exuberant, an impressive Chevalier that has tannins and fruit and freshness, nothing shouting too loud. As it opens, you see a peony floral edge that is very attractive. Easily among the best in Pessac. A yield of 38hl/ha.Drinking Window 2027 - 2042