Winemaker Notes
A wine with a deep, concentrated color. The bouquet is equally delightful, with its intense range of aromas dominated by ripe fruit with floral and spicy overtones. This wine is charmingly balanced and generous on the palate with perfectly smooth tannins. The finish is long and aromatic. In short, a wine with an astonishing personality, embodying both power and elegance.
Blend: 56% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Franc, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Black cherries, spicy wood, graphite, and chalky minerality all define the 2023 Château Fleur Cardinale, an incredibly classy Saint-Emilion based on 58% Merlot, 33% Cabernet Franc, and 9% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged in a mix of new oak barrels (45%), second-fill barrels, 500-liter barrels, foudres, and amphorae, it's deep purple-hued and incredibly complete, with medium-bodied richness, a great mid-palate, and flawless balance. It's absolutely terrific and will have 20-25 years of longevity.
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James Suckling
Good depth on the nose, with ripe dark cherries, currants, berries and touches of dark chocolate and fine spices. Fine, precise tannins surround the palate, with a medium to full body and a polished, lasting finish. Quite velvety. Already delicious, but can hold well for the next decade. Drink or hold.
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Vinous
The 2023 Fleur Cardinale is gorgeous. Vivid, heady and explosive, the 2023 has a ton to offer. I especially admire its energy and overall drive. Black cherry, mocha, gravel, spice, chocolate and menthol all blossom in this explosive, full-throttle Saint-Émilion. Tasted two times. –Antonio Galloni
Barrel Sample: 92-95 -
Wine Spectator
Flavors of plum paste and cherry pre- serves are layered together, with a snap of red licorice and a spine of gently singed apple wood on the finish. Nicely rendered. Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
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.