 | 2022 Ch. Cheval Blanc - Saint Emilion | € 590,00 (€ 713,90) |
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Onderstaande persscores (10 x 100 make a 1000 point wine??) spreken voor zich: 2022 Cheval Blanc is Wine of the Vintage. Maar wij wisten dit zelf ook al: evidenties zijn... evident. We hernemen onze eigen proefnota beter niet: u zou blozen. Het volstond om de glimlach van Pierre-Olivier Clouet (van oor tot oor) te zien terwijl hij me toeriep: “ on ne fait pas de Petit Cheval cette année, tous les lots étaient juste TROP bons…” Van de 43 percelen gaan er 41 in de Grand Vin. Cheval Blanc is een monument in wording. Félicitations! Met een gemiddelde jaartemperatuur boven 15°C is 2022 het warmste kalenderjaar ooit. De oogst startte al op 29 augustus en 80% van Merlot was al geplukt voor de kinderen naar school gingen… « Un climat dans l’excès nous donne pourtant des vins avenants. Le Cabernet Franc est un gage de fraîcheur dans la garde. Il nous aide ». Accentjes van munt stralen doorheen de ganse ervaring. « Le milieu de bouche est très en place et la charge tannique est bien maîtrisée. Le vin paraît armé. Comme 2009 c’est un immense vin de garde qui semble déjà accessible ». Dit is een onvoorstelbaar mooie wijn « avec de la carrure ». Waterhuishouding, eigen aan de allergrootste terroirs, is de sleutel van het succes. Van mulching tot agroforresterie : Cheval Blanc staat bovendien het verst inzake innovatie. De resultaten zijn er… Het potentieel van deze 2022 is E-NOR-ME. We reserveerden kistjes van 3 flessen om zoveel mogelijk mensen plezier te kunnen doen. 53% Merlot, 46% Cabernet Franc et 1% Cabernet Sauvignon. 13,9%vol. 27hl/ha. 3,86 pH. 100% nieuwe eik. IN DE PERS 98 William Kelley – The Wine Advocate - robertparker.com (Maart 2025) The 2022 Château Cheval Blanc has turned out beautifully in bottle, bursting from the glass with aromas of minty mulberries, licorice and rose petals mingled with hints of pipe tobacco and baking chocolate. Full-bodied, rich and velvety, it's layered and unctuous, with sweet, powdery tannins and a broad, enveloping profile, concluding with a long, fragrant finish. Flamboyant but controlled, this blend of 53% Merlot, 46% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon spent only 12 months in barrique. There's no Petit Cheval this year, as what little wasn't deemed up to the level of the grand vin was sold off in bulk. Drink 2027-2060. 97-99+ William Kelley – The Wine Advocate Issue 266 - robertparker.com (April 2023) One of the stars of the vintage is the striking 2022 Cheval Blanc, a blend of 53% Merlot, 46% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon that bursts from the glass with aromas of mulberries, cherries and wild berries mingled with mint, orange zest, pencil lead, vine smoke and exotic spices. Medium to full-bodied, velvety and layered, it's rich and gourmand, with beautifully refined tannins, lively acids and a long, saline, pungently perfumed finish. Harvest began on 29 August, with all the Merlot picked before the month was out, and the result is a wine that is as vibrant as it is lavish. 98 Neal Martin – vinous.com (Januari 2025) Three-quarters of the Merlot in the 2022 Cheval Blanc was Merlot picked in August-when no grape had ever been picked in that month before. It aged for just 13 months since the balance, texture and freshness were all exactly where they should be and there were concerns about the pH and potential spoilage if it spent a second winter in oak. The 2022 has an incredibly intense nose, yet it effortlessly maintains the delineation that most Right Bank estates can only dream about. Hints of blackcurrant, blueberry, violet, Earl Grey and an underlying mineralité come through with time. The palate is medium-bodied, perfectly balanced, pure and well defined with filigree tannins and hints of pencil shavings infusing the shimmering black fruit. A deft touch of black pepper on the aftertaste completes one of the standout wines in recent years. Tasted in September 2024 and then in January 2025 because I.er..forgot that I had already visited! Drink 2032-2080. 98-100 Neal Martin – vinous.com (Mei 2023) The 2022 Cheval Blanc is a lucid, deep purple color. With profound intensity on the nose, this Cheval offers blackcurrant, blue fruit, iris petals, crushed stone and incense aromas. It is blessed with breathtaking delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with seamless tannins. There is palpable verticality in this Cheval, almost "correct" and "strict", yet endowed with stunning depth and complexity. The Cabernets are clearly in the driving seat here and lend it Left Bank allure. Consequently, while it is not the most flamboyant Cheval Blanc I have tasted at this stage, it constitutes a wine for those serious about their Bordeaux. It will give the same satisfaction as when you finish reading a literary masterpiece. Drink 2032-2080. 99 Antonio Galloni – vinous.com (Januari 2025) The 2022 Cheval Blanc is quite unusual in that it was made from 46 out of the 47 parcels that make up the estate, the highest proportion of blocks ever used in the Grand Vin. There is also no Petit Cheval. One block was sold in bulk, and everything else went into the Grand Vin. That's basically it. In tasting, the 2022 is a wine of sublime elegance, and yet there's a certain strictness in its vertical build that keeps things buttoned up. Time in the glass starts to release the Cabernet Franc aromatics, but this remains incredibly dense. It barely budged over the two days I followed it. All the 2022 needs is time. The only question is how much. Drink 2032-2072. 98-100 Lisa Perrotti-Brown – thewineindependent.com (Mei 2023) The 2022 Cheval Blanc is a blend of 53% Merlot, 46% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon and it has a deep garnet-purple color. It erupts from the glass with an intense perfume of violets, rose oil, and licorice, leading to a vibrant, fruity core of juicy blueberries, fresh blackberries, redcurrant preserves, and raspberry coulis, plus a waft of cinnamon stick. Medium-bodied, the palate begins fragrant and opulent, textures and flavors melting in the mouth like Turkish Delight, leading to a generous core of juicy black, blue, and red berry layers, supported by super-fine, silt-like tannins, finishing very long, minerally and refreshing. So graceful, so singular, so Cheval. 18,5/20 James Lawther – jancisrobinson.com (Mei 2023) 53% Merlot, 46% Cabernet Franc, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon. No Petit Cheval this year and two parcels sold 'en VRAC' (sold in bulk to the négociants), the rest in the grand vin. Cask sample. Floral notes from the Cabernet Franc with a hint of mint and chocolate. Sumptuous texture, the fruit juicy and fresh but the perception silky and smooth. Powerfully built but ripe tannins behind. Delicious and just so refined. One of the wines of the vintage. 13.9%. Drink 2032– 2055. 99-100 James Suckling – jamessuckling.com (April 2023) This is a wine that soars to new heights with its brightness and weightlessness. The balance of serene fruit that’s perfectly ripe. Full-bodied yet tight and polished where it seems delicate and compressed, with berry, chocolate and walnut character. The finish is endless and poised. Wine of the vintage? 53% merlot, 46% cabernet franc and 1% cabernet sauvignon. 98-100 Jane Anson – janeanson.com (Mei 2023) Kicks off with an explosive nose of freshly crushed red roses, liqourice root and smoked sandalwood. The exuberance of the vintage means that this is a Cheval that feels more approachable at this stage than many years, but no less complex. Blueberry, raspberry and cassis fruits, along with ink, soot, baked earth, incense and saffran, closing to mouthwatering lime and mandarin zest that add juice and length on the finish. Just a great wine from director Pierre Olivier Clouet and the team. 100% new oak barrels for ageing. Harvest began on August 29 (earliest ever, with 80% of Merlot bought in by the end of August), then Cabernet Franc in by September 20. 3.86ph. No Petit Cheval this year, but just 78% of production in the 1st wine. And this is the first year where Cheval Blanc is just a simple, lowly AOC St Emilion, after its withdrawal from the classification. A potential 100 points. 98-100 Georgina Hindle – decanter.com (Mei 2023) An extremely gorgeous 2022 taking the best from the vintage in terms of power, concentration and structure and presenting it with elegance, purity and a kind of quiet confidence that Cheval does so well. Crushed stones, salt, blue fruits and soft perfumed aromas on the nose. Smooth texture, so fine, silky, supple and agile, this has such an alluring energy from the first sip. Tannins are velvety soft providing a gentle grip with a powdery, chalky graphite, liquorice and fresh mint touch. This feels calm and controlled with the power coming slowly and subtly in the undercurrent of lush ripe fruit. Intensity is matched by accessibility with a combination of high acidity and appealing sweetness with layers of nuance and detail. So complete - nothing is missing here, but it's more about what it's not saying than what it is. A great wine that has potential for upscore in bottle. Potential 100 point wine. A yield of 27hl/ha, due to size of the berries. 3.86pH. 72IPT. No Petit Cheval this year, a total of 78% grand vin production. 98-100 Ella Lister – lefigaro.fr (Mei 2023) – une expérience 3D Au premier nez, on décèle tout de suite une sapidité florale, si représentative de ce millésime. Le nez se dévoile sur un grand bouquet de fleurs de toutes les couleurs, fraîchement coupées, la fraîcheur végétale monte aux narines et vous fait prendre un grand bol d'air frais. Hypnotique comme un dédale en forme de spirale qui ne vous laisse pas sortir de son univers pur, doux et floral. Une précision pixellisée en bouche, d'une transparence et d'une limpidité extraordinaires, une texture de trame de cachemire très fin. Le vin – même jeune – en a encore dans le ventre : la finale est tendue, pure, soyeuse et tellement savoureuse, saline, gourmande, d'une longueur impressionnante. Une profondeur de champs exceptionnelle, une expérience 3D, avec maîtrise et modération néanmoins. 100 Jean Marc Quarin 99-100 Alexandre Ma – alexandrema.com (Mei 2023) Cheval BlancCheval Blanc is één van de meest gerespecteerde wijnen in Bordeaux. De wijngaard zet de toon in Saint Emilion met een imposante oppervlakte van 37 hectare. Toch vertoont hij er een apart karakter, enerzijds omwille van zijn ligging (een grachtje scheidt hem van Pomerol) en anderzijds, omwille van de aangeplante cépages. Met 58% Cabernet Franc - de rest is Merlot - ontplooit Cheval Blanc zijn ware aard pas over een langere termijn. Imponeren doet hij met gedrevenheid en elegantie, zonder overdaad of overdondering. De beste flessen worden gevonden in de wijnjaren 1921, 1947, 1990, 2000, 2009 en 2010. De 1947 en 2010 kregen een perfecte Parkerscore. Kortom, Cheval Blanc staat voor majesteit. Het is één van “the Big Eight”, de acht meest vermaarde historische Châteaux van Bordeaux. Die benaming groepeert de Premiers van de Médoc (Latour, Lafite, Mouton, Margaux alsook Haut Brion in Pessac), Ausone eveneens in Saint Emilion, Petrus in Pomerol en Yquem in Sauternes. Samen met Ausone, Pavie en Angélus draagt Cheval Blanc de titel van Premier Grand Cru Classé “A”. Eigenaars Bernard Arnault en Baron Frère vertrouwen de leiding toe aan Pierre Lurton. Hij wordt bijgestaan door een dreamteam van technici met onder meer Pierre-Olivier Clouet en Professor Kees Van Leeuwen. Hun toewijding is groot. Cheval Blanc domineert het landschap zeker na de recente bouwwerken geleid door architect Christian de Portzamparc. Au XVIII° siècle, l’actuel terroir de Cheval Blanc comportait une importante surface de vignes, comme l’atteste une carte de Belleyme, datée en 1764. Près d’un siècle plus tard, la propriété est acquise par la famille Fourcaud-Laussac qui la conservera jusqu’en 1998, et la cèdera alors à Monsieur Bernard Arnault et au Baron Albert Frère. La propriété forme un ensemble homogène d’un seul tenant, à la limite de l’appellation Pomerol.
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