Winemaker Notes
L'Esprit de Chevalier Blanc is rich, lively and complex, with very pure and specific aromas, which can be enjoyed young. It has a fruity and racy character, also more open and therefore easier to appreciate at a young age.
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
Crushed stone, sliced apple and lemon. Green apple. Some limes, too. Full and intense with beautiful intensity and brightness. Phenolic and vivid. Flavorful finish. Vibrant. 60% sauvignon blanc and 40% semillon. Drink or hold.
-
Decanter
Light and sappy with stone fruits, apricot and nectarine, there is an underlying sweetness that is hugely appealing. It really closes in through the palate and has a ton of grip with the touch of Pessac-Léognan elegance but can be rolled out and enjoyed straight away.
Barrel Sample: 91 -
Jeb Dunnuck
Starting with the whites, the 2020 L'Esprit De Chevalier Blanc is all about finesse and elegance, offering medium-bodied aromas and flavors of citrus, honeyed minerality, and white flowers. Drink this vibrant, juicy, incredibly pure white over the coming 5-7 years.
Sometimes light and crisp, other times rich and creamy, Bordeaux White Blends typically consist of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Often, a small amount of Muscadelle or Sauvignon Gris is included for added intrigue. Popularized in Bordeaux, the blend is often mimicked throughout the New World. Somm Secret—Sauternes and Barsac are usually reserved for dessert, but they can be served before, during or after a meal. Try these sweet wines as an aperitif with jamón ibérico, oysters with a spicy mignonette or during dinner alongside hearty Alsatian sausage.
Recognized for its superior reds as well as whites, Pessac-Léognan on the Left Bank claims classified growths for both—making it quite unique in comparison to its neighboring Médoc properties.
Pessac’s Chateau Haut-Brion, the only first growth located outside of the Médoc, is said to have been the first to conceptualize fine red wine in Bordeaux back in the late 1600s. The estate, along with its high-esteemed neighbors, La Mission Haut-Brion, Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pique-Caillou and Chateau Pape-Clément are today all but enveloped by the city of Bordeaux. The rest of the vineyards of Pessac-Léognan are in clearings of heavily forested area or abutting dense suburbs.
Arid sand and gravel on top of clay and limestone make the area unique and conducive to growing Sémillon and Sauvignon blanc as well as the grapes in the usual Left Bank red recipe: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and miniscule percentages of Petit Verdot and Malbec.
The best reds will show great force and finesse with inky blue and black fruit, mushroom, forest, tobacco, iodine and a smooth and intriguing texture.
Its best whites show complexity, longevity and no lack of exotic twists on citrus, tropical and stone fruit with pronounced floral and spice characteristics.