Winemaker Notes
The 2023 vintage soars delicacy. Air, the distiller of infinite nuances that blend and expand. In these high spheres, a floral chorus and raspberry notes. Pepper, mint. Ethereal hook. Limestone reigns in silence. Length of shivered tongues - saline climax. All the intensity of the Canon signature.
Blend: 71% Merlot, 29% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This may be one of the wines of the vintage, with brightness and ethereal character that give it an almost magical presence. Aromas of violets, lavender and blackberries with transparency and vividness. It’s medium-bodied with elegance and presence that give endless length. A benchmark. The tannins and acidity caress every millimetter of your palate. 71% merlot and 29% cabernet franc.
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Decanter
Another excellent wine from the team at Canon benefitting from its position on the limestone plateau. Deep florals, violets, black fruits, some purple fruits too with cocoa powder and cool fresh blueberries. Smooth and so refined, this has a comfort in the mouth that few others have - a certain weight that defies the vintage - almost fleshy but more thick juice rather than lean, with a sweet core as well as biting acidity that provides a great contrast. This is a serious wine, it has structure and movement, supple tannins, so fine with a touch of chalk, strawberry, cranberry and red cherry fruit with liquorice spice on the finish. Assured winemaking, ripe fruit, great acidity and body, ending clean and pure with wet stones and graphite touches. Just delicious, a wine that tastes great now and feels like it’ll always be that way. Expansive in the best way. Ageing 16-18 months in 50% new oak as well as foudre. 3.42pH.
Barrel Sample: 98 -
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Wafting from the glass with aromas of mulberries and raspberries mingled with spices, rose petals, licorice and violets, the 2023 Canon is another brilliant wine from a property whose excellence can almost be taken for granted. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, it's seamless and concentrated, its vibrant core of fruit framed by sweet, powdery tannins and girdled by lively acids, concluding with a long, mineral finish.
Barrel Sample: 96-98 -
Jeb Dunnuck
Based on 71% Merlot and 29% Cabernet Franc and aged 16-18 months in 50% new oak including three foudres, the 2023 Château Canon is a more medium-bodied, finesse-driven wine compared to its sibling Château Berliquet, which is always a bigger, richer wine. It offers red fruits, crushed stone, graphite, chalk, and floral notes on the nose. On the palate, it's focused, with good acidity, just about flawless balance, and a gorgeous finish. Give it 3-4 years if you can and this will be a classic Canon to enjoy over the following two decades. It reminds me slightly of the 2001. Rating: 96+
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Vinous
A wine of classicism and reserve, the 2023 Canon is less overtly expressive than most recent vintages, keeping much of its personality in reserve. Nevertheless, I watched it grow considerably over the two weeks I spent in Bordeaux. Bright red-toned fruit, blood orange, mint and spice are some of the many notes that open in the glass. It is a wine that marries generous fruit with classical rigor. I won't be surprised if it shows even better with time. Tasted four times. –Antonio Galloni
Barrel Sample: 94-96 -
Wine Spectator
Bright, juicy damson plum and cherry com- pote notes lead the way, with flashes of rose hip and lightly singed vanilla. Subtle, tensile, chalky minerality skirts underneath, adding latent length. An under- stated style. Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
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.