Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
A great success for the vintage, this wine is firmly structured and expressive, bringing out a dark structure, ripe tannins and swathes of black fruits. Further generosity will develop as the wine matures. Drink from 2018.
-
Wine Spectator
Captures the briary feel of the vintage, delivering a solid core of plum, bitter cherry and black currant mixed with notes of tobacco leaf and pain d'épices. A prominent charcoal spine takes over on the finish. Best from 2016 through 2026.
-
James Suckling
This is grapey, with licorice and flowers on the nose and palate. Medium to full body with fine tannins and a medium finish. Needs time to open. Better in 2016.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A masculine, slightly rustic style of St.-Emilion, this dense ruby/purple-hued, medium-bodied 2011 exhibits notes of mulberries, black cherries, earth, graphite and a touch of background oak. It possesses elevated tannins, but a good attack and impressive purity as well as depth. Give it 2-3 years of cellaring and drink it over the next 15+ years.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.