Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This stunning success from Berliquet is unquestionably a sleeper of the vintage. Made from 75% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine is looked after by the impressive duo of Nicolas Thienpont and Stephane Derenoncourt. The dense blue/purple-colored 2011 offers a big, sweet kiss of blackberries, black cherries, licorice and crushed chalk. It possesses plenty of minerality as well as impressively concentrated fruit and a nicely extracted (but not over-extracted) personality. It will provide plenty of enjoyment for 15 or more years.
Barrel Sample: 90-93 Points -
Wine Spectator
Bold, with lots of blueberry and bing cherry aromas and flavors and a creamy feel through the finish. Nicely imbedded acidity holds the flashy fruit together. Well done.
Barrel Sample: 89-92 Points -
James Suckling
This shows lots of energy and beauty. Full body with lively fruit, tannins and acidity. Intense. Impressive. People need to understand where this is: just next to Canon. Better in 2017.
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Wine Enthusiast
The tannins are tough, although the fruit character is juicy in this wine. This makes for a well-structured, solid expression, with intense and crisp acidity at the end.
Barrel Sample: 89-91 Points
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.