Château Cheval Blanc 2016 - 1st Great Cru Class A
By Chateau Cheval Blanc...
Forty-five plots for a unique heritage, a living mosaic
Located in the commune of Saint-Emilion, but at the limit of the territory of Pomerol, the estate covers 39 hectares divided into forty-five parcels which are as many small vineyards with their own unique identity, made up of a particular soil, grape variety and planting age. This specificity shapes the complexity of the Cheval Blanc wine.
This specificity can be explained first of all by the complex natural heritage that Cheval Blanc enjoys: here three main types of soil cohabit forming a true mosaic, sometimes with a fine and clayey texture, sometimes with a coarser and gravelly texture. A singular terroir, essentially composed of clay and coarse gravel on some plots, finer and sandier on others. Some properties in Saint-Emilion have excellent gravelly soils; others, in Saint-Emilion or Pomerol, benefit from very good clayey soils. It is a pure coincidence of history that at Cheval Blanc, these two types of soil coexist in roughly equal proportions.
Château-Cheval-Blanc
On the 2016 vintage, the fruits dominate by mixing red and black fruits such as cherry, raspberry, blackberry, blackcurrant. The floral register is not in pain, this wine expresses violet, rose, peony, lilac. The nose shines by its brightness and its sharpness. The attack, creamy and voluminous, continues towards a mid-palate with powerful but coated tannins, rich and elegant, voluminous and refined. It is the balance between tannins and acidity that gives this wine its breed and gives it an endless length, fresh and fruity.
A very great vintage, dry and fresh, which expresses all the typicity of a great Cheval Blanc, at the same time complex, balanced, dense and fresh. A wine with an immense ageing potential.
Notation by Jean-Marc Quarin:
Dark, intense, deep and beautiful color. Nose very original, very aromatic, fine, fruity, pure, complex and noble. It is at the same time deep, lively and truffled. Smooth on the attack, suave on the development, melting and rich in the middle of the mouth, the wine is complex, juicy, noble, tasty and fat. It evolves on fine tannins, towards a great finish which enthuses by the delicacy of its grain and the precision of its aromas. This is Cheval Blanc en diable!
Data sheet
- Designation
- Saint-Emilion
- Year
- 2016
- Color
- Red
- Acceptance
- Merlot 58%, Cabernet Franc 38%, Cabernet Sauvignon 4%
- Alcohol level
- 14.25
- Apogee
- 2028 - 2060
Jean-Marc Quarin - Noté 99/100
James Suckling - Noté 99/100
Vinous / Neal Martin - Noté 98/100
Decanter / Jane Anson - Noté 98/100
Wine Advocate / Lisa Perrotti - Noté 100/100
Vinous / Antonio Galloni - Noté 98/100
