Wine Dinner - Commanderie de Bordeaux Mexico City
In May, I was invited to lead a wine dinner for the Commanderie de Bordeaux chapter in Mexico City. Established in early 2023, the chapter’s “Maître” is entrepreneur and hard core wine lover Humberto Herrera. Humberto and I connected through Instagram in the fall of 2022 and became fast friends over our mutual love of older Loire Valley Cabernet Franc and one domaine in particular, Domaine Alain et Jérôme Lenoir.
Humberto asked if I would be willing to come to Mexico City to lead a Cabernet Franc-themed dinner for the newly established Commanderie chapter, and naturally I jumped at the chance. On one condition… we had to include some Loire Cabernet Francs in the mix. In Bordeaux, as it is well-known, Cabernet Franc-dominant wines let alone single varietal Cabernet Franc is rare, so the goal was to choose wines from châteaux and domaines who see Cabernet Franc as an integral part of their DNA. For the Loire wines, my goal was to showcase the core regions and highlight top vineyards and/or producers depending on what was available.
With the assistance of the chapter’s caviste extraordinaire Maxime Picq of Vigonbles et Châteaux in St-Emilion, I curated a list of Cabernet Franc-forward Bordeaux wines and some selections from the Loire for the dinner. The wines were shipped direct from France, so I could be certain of their provenance and how they were stored. The wines were paired with Michelin-level cuisine by Chef Miguel Sánchez Navarro, owner of Cardo Experiencia Culinaria.
This event was unquestionably the highlight of my wine career to date. To have the budget and support to choose this incredible line up of wines, and the platform to share my passion for Cabernet Franc, and the stories of this grape and the people and places who honour it the way it deserves… well, it really doesn’t get much better than that.
Below is the all-star line up, in the order they were presented with some of my notes.
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Flight One
Les Perrières de Lafleur, Bordeaux Supérieur 2020 (71% Bouchet, 29% Merlot): The first of two wines from the Guinaudeau family of Château Lafleur. André Robin, and later his daughters Thérèse and Marie, set the stage for what is today the Guinaudeau family’s intense passion for Cabernet Franc. Beginning in the early 2000s, Jacques and Sylvie Guinaudeau passed the torch to Baptiste and Julie Guinaudeau, who have continued the the tireless work started by the Robin family to preserve their heritage Bouchet vines. Using their plantings of the variety, which date to prior the great frost of 1956 (many of which date to the 1930s, which were also planted via selection massale), new vines have been replanted via massale selection in their vineyards at Lafleur, Château Grand Village in Mouillac, and now the plots in Meyney in Fronsac for Les Perrières. Bouchet is the local and historical name for Cabernet Franc on the Right Bank, and the family now only refers to their plantings of Cabernet Franc as Bouchet. The idea for Les Perrières was conceived by Baptiste and Julie in 2009 from the desire to see how their proprietary Bouchet (and Merlot) vines would express the terroir of the limestone plateau in Fronsac (as there is no limestone in Pomerol). After years of blending trials from parcels of their vines at Grand Villages (wines referred to as Les Actes), and testing different soils across the region, they settled on a 3.6ha vineyard in the hamlet of Meyney, which was planted by massale selection in 2016 for the Bouchet and 2017 for the Merlot. In the parcels, there is 40 to 50cm of silty-clay topsoil followed immediately by a bedrock of calcaire d’astéries. The inaugural vintage for Les Perrières was 2018. In 2020, some of the Merlot vines had not come into full production, so the assemblage leans more heavily on Bouchet, but future vintages will generally be closer to 50/50 in terms of the assemblage. This wine is all about sophistication and refinement, and immediately set the bar high for the remainder of the dinner. Being such a young wine, it was very primary in nature, showing more Merlot at first and a bit of oak, but revisiting it later in the evening, with some oxygen, the Bouchet began to show through and some of that initial baby fat was shed showing the taut, upright frame underneath. Even in its youth, it showed a lot of depth and layers, with firm tannins, vibrant acidity with a slight kiss of salinity. I suspect that in about 3 to 5 years time, it will really start to sing.
Clos des Baies, St-Emilion Grand Cru ‘Face Baies du Clos des Baies’ 2016 (100% Cabernet Franc): One of the joys of working with a caviste like Vignobles et Châteaux to curate these wines direct from France is you come across exclusive, rare gems you would have never otherwise encountered. Face Baies from Clos des Baies is such a wine. Clos des Baies is the passion/side project of Philippe Baillarguet, cellar master at Château Ausone since 1997. Leading up to the dinner, I had a wonderful email exchange with Philippe regarding this wine and his passion for Cabernet Franc. Since he began making wine at Ausone, he has fallen in love with Cabernet Franc (which usually makes up around 40-50% of the blend for Ausone) because of its finesse, elegance and complexity. In 2010, he launched Clos des Baies with 1.17ha of vines and the desire to make two wines from his small holdings, one that was a representation of St-Emilion in the classic sense (that is mostly Merlot) and then a 100% Cabernet Franc. The Face Baies is from a 0.33 hectare plot of 40 year old vines in the commune of St-Laurent-des-Combes, which is the next commune east of St-Emilion. This plot is at the southern end of the commune on the second Quaternary terrace, with a south-facing exposure and the soil is gravelly sand over a deep clay subsoil. Philippe eschews some winemaking techniques that are otherwise common place in Bordeaux, such has fermentation using whole berries (as opposed to crushed) and no new oak, in an effort to retain Cabernet Franc’s purity and “sparkle” as he describes it. On first sip, I was immediately smitten with this wine. Soulful, playful, with balanced earthiness. The wine had all of the elements I love about Cabernet Franc both aromatically and structurally. Most of all it was humble and honest, and lacked the pretentiousness often associated with Bordeaux wines. (As an aside, when I presented this wine in Mexico, I had no idea that I would get to not only meet Philippe a couple weeks later in Bordeaux, but actually taste the 2022 Ausone final blend with him from barrel. Philippe’s love for Cabernet Franc is infectious and puts this wine in a whole new light for me. Hopefully I’ll have a chance to re-taste it in the future.)
Château Petit Gravet Aîné, St-Emilion Grand Cru 2018 (90% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot): Proprietor Catherine Papon Nouvel is one of the few women winemakers and châteaux owners in St-Emilion. Coming from a long lineage of winemakers, she returned to tend to her family’s vines after completing her studies. The family has vines planted across 3 different estates in the appellation. Uniquely, two of the three estates are planted with predominantly Cabernet Franc: Château Petit Gravet Aîné (80% of the vines are Cabernet Franc) and Clos Saint-Julien (about 60% of the vines are Cabernet Franc). Petit Gravet Aîné is a 2.5-hectare estate located south of the village of St-Emilion, less than a kilometre southwest of Château La Gaffelière, on the higher slopes that descend from the limestone plateau. The parcels are deep sand over the molasse de fronsadais, and the vines are 70 years old and farmed certified organic. This was my first time trying this wine, and what I really appreciated about it was that it really felt true to the grape and place. The varietal character of Cabernet Franc was front and centre, savoury with a mix of red and dark fruits, herbal undertones and beguiling floral perfume. Plush, with firm tannins, even though this wine was quite young, it was remarkably approachable. At around $55USD (45EUR) this is an excellent value.
Flight Two
Charles Joguet, Chinon 'Les Varennes Franc de Pied' 2005 (100% Cabernet Franc): When we initially started planning this dinner, it was thought that we “needed” to includes a couple white Bordeaux at the beginning, rather than it be all red wines. In the end, we just said to hell with that, which left a couple extra spots for MORE Cabernet Franc. This was one of the wines that was chosen in lieu of a white, and I am thrilled it was. Charles Joguet is one of Chinon’s benchmark estates, and is widely considered among the pioneers in the region who demonstrated that Chinon is more than just early-drinking, “easy” wines, and that the appellation can produce serious wines as well. This was the first time I had tried this wine, which is a rare bottling from a 1-hectare parcel of ungrafted vines planted in the lieu-dit Les Varennes du Grand Clos. This vineyard, along with Clos de la Dioterie, are the “home vineyards” of Charles Joguet, located at the domaine in the commune of Sazilly on the south side of the Vienne. The initial planting was in 1982, and a portion had to be replanted in 1992 and again in 1995 because the vines succumbed to phylloxera. It is possible that the last bottling of this wine was in fact in 2005 as the parcel was pulled up in 2007, but I don’t know for certain. 2005 was an excellent year, and this wine showed beautifully at the dinner. It might’ve been the wine of the night for me, which says a lot considering we had some pretty exceptional bottles. It was persistent and soulful, and balanced youthfulness and maturity beautifully - young enough to still have some fresh fruit and primary notes, but with some age to start to show all of the sexiness that older Loire Cabernet Franc can exhibit (earth, autumn leaves, graphite, etc).
Aurélien Revillot, Bourgueil 'Grand Mont' 2017 (100% Cabernet Franc): This wine was one that I brought from my cellar to include in the line up. I had a couple Chinons and a Saumur-Champigny (based on availability) already selected for the dinner, but I wanted to have a wine from Bourgueil or St-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil in the mix so that I could talk about these appellations for the sake of completeness. While there are many historical domaines with parcels in Grand Mont, I wanted to take the opportunity to highlight one of the new, up-and-coming producers in the appellation. I visited Aurélien Revillot in May 2023, and with only 10 vintages or so under his belt, I was extremely impressed with Aurélien’s wines, which are a reflection of his attention to detail in the vineyard and the cellar. Grand Mont is widely considered one of the top vineyards in Bourgueil. Located on the slopes in Benais, the wines from this site are some of the most structured, and age-worthy in the appellation. Produced in very small quantities, Aurélien has only 0.4 hectares of vines in Grand Mont, and his parcels have a clayey-sand topsoil over the Middle Turnoian white tuffeau. Even with a good 3-hour decant, it took a long time for this wine to open up. In fact, when I went back to it at the end of the evening, after being open around 7+ hours, it was like “finally!” This wine is about the interplay between density, tension and purity. In keeping with Aurélien’s approach in the cellar, while there is power here, Aurélien’s Grand Mont is also incredibly restrained with beautifully sculpted, silky tannins that add incredible elegance and completeness to the wine. If you have this in your cellar, there is no rush to open this. It will only get better.
Flight Three - This flight was designed to showcase Cabernet Franc from different terroirs in Bordeaux.
Le Dôme, St-Emilion Grand Cru 2011 (80% Cabernet Franc, 20% Merlot): Jonathan Maltus’ Le Dôme has one of the highest percentages of Cabernet Franc in the blend in St-Emilion consistently every vintage (usually 75-80%). The parcels for this wine were once part of Vieux Château Mazerat, which was originally owned by the Gouteyron family. They identified these parcels as ideal for Cabernet Franc rather than Merlot, and planted it accordingly back in the mid-1950s. Since Jonathan Maltus acquired the parcels in 1994, he did not and has not made any changes to the plantings, and began bottling Le Dôme as a terroir-driven, single vineyard wine back in 1996. The parcels are located on the first Quaternary terrace west of the limestone plateau, a stone’s throw from Château Angélus, and are predominantly deep, sandy-gravel over clay. Moreover, they lie on the vein of underlying geology that extends northwest right through the vineyards of Château Cheval Blanc and into Pomerol. I had the 2009 Le Dôme back in January of this year, and the 2011 in keeping with the 2009, albeit not quite as showy as the 2009 given the vintage. The Cabernet Franc leads here in a rather regal fashion, showing its structure through persistent acidity and cashmere-like tannins, supported by some volume in the middle thanks to the Merlot. Earthy complexity (cedar, cypress, marjoram), pink florals, the 2011 is showing well 12 years into its life. This is an assertive, confident wine, and yet is remains approachable in its demeanour.
Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan Rouge 2014 (54% Cabernet Franc, 32% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon): This wine was another addition in lieu of a white (I mean, who really needs to drink white wine anyway), which I have Max to thank for the introduction to this château. Les Carmes Haut-Brion is beginning to make a name for itself as one of the properties “to watch” on the Left Bank, and uniquely it has the highest percentage of Cabernet Franc in their vineyards and the final blend of any property on the Left Bank. Of the 1,343 hectares of red grapes planted in Pessac-Léognan, a mere 36 hectares (about 2.7%) are Cabernet Franc. Les Carmes Haut-Brion, which has been in the hands of Patrice Pichet since 2011, is located at the very north end of Pessac-Léognan, technically within the Bordeaux city limits. Their vineyards are planted with 45% Cabernet Franc, with even one hectare of 80 year old ungrafted Cabernet Franc vines. In keeping with what is consistent on the Left Bank, Les Carmes sits on a gravel mound over a subsoil of clay-limestone. There is a stream that runs through the property, which I think may be one of the reasons why Cabernet Franc has been so successful here (it does not handle drought stress well, particularly compared to Cabernet Sauvignon, which excels on the Left Banks warmer, gravelly soils). From my understanding, 2014 was not the easiest vintage with many wines lacking in depth and concentration of “better” years, but I quite enjoyed this wine. Actually, it was one of my favourite wines of the dinner. What impressed me about the wine was its aromatic complexity - extremely symphonic in nature. Lots going on, from herbs to tobacco, to spice to pencil lead, autumnal character and layers of fruit, all working together in harmony. Very Cabernet Franc-forward, which I really appreciated. There was no denying the varietal make-up in the wine. I recall I kept going back to nose the wine because it was so intriguing and inviting. Texturally, the grippy tannins mingled well with the acidity giving the wine some nice tension. It’s also worth noting that this is a rare example of a Bordeaux red fermented with a significant portion whole cluster bunches, about 45%, which I think also contributed to the energy in this wine. It is a wine that I will be seeking out and trying as often as I can.
Les Pensées de Lafleur, Pomerol 2017 (48% Bouchet, 52% Merlot): While I had a very good budget to work with for this dinner, the dollars were not infinite, and I had some other heavy hitters that took priority in the line up, but I needed to talk about Château Lafleur and Guinaudeau family’s work with Cabernet Franc in Pomerol, so their Les Pensées de Lafleur gave me the opportunity to do just that. The plots at Lafleur have been planted 50/50 Cabernet Franc and Merlot since 1872. As I alluded to above, today all the Cabernet Franc vines at Lafleur have been planted via massale selection from their heritage Bouchet vines many of which were planted in the 1930s. These plantings represents an unusually high percentage of Cabernet Franc for Pomerol, and the family attributes this historical plantation in favour of Bouchet over Merlot to the unique soil composition at Lalfeur. Even though they are just a few hundred metres from Pétrus, where the parcels are used specifically for Château Lalfeur’s grand vin, the soils more closely resemble that of nearby St-Emilion on the Quaternary terrace, with a mix of sands, gravels and clays. Turning our attention to Les Pensées de Lafleur, it is important to note off the top that today this is not the “second wine” of Château Lafleur (that is to say a declassified selection from the whole vineyard based on vintage or vine age) rather this is a “terroir” wine from a specific slice of the Lafleur vineyard the posses specific attributes that they wish to express through a single wine which is then made from these parcels each vintage. (When Les Pensées was launched in 1987, it was indeed a “second wine” and remained as such through 1999. Since the 2000 vintage, Les Pensées has been made as a “terroir wine.”) What is interesting (at least for the purposes of this dinner) is the plots for Les Pensées are more classically “Pomerol” than those for Château Lafleur, that is to say there is a lot more of the heavy “sticky” clay we associate with Pomerol. Les Pensées is usually Merlot dominant, but in 2017 the frost impacted their Merlot plots, so the assemblage shifted in favour of Cabernet Franc. For me, this was definitely one of the most interesting wines of the dinner to taste because the impact of the clay was so apparent in the wine. Next to the Le Dôme and the Les Carmes Haut-Brion, the Les Pensées was dense, structured and somewhat unyielding. Depth, persistence, and lots of Cabernet Franc spice, it showed exactly as I had hoped it would for the purposes of this terroir demonstration.
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Herri Mina, Irouléguy Rouge 2019 (100% Cabernet Franc): This was another wine that I brought from my cellar, and it was presented blind as a little surprise for the guests. My intention behind presenting this wine was twofold: I wanted to talk about Cabernet Franc’s Basque Country origins, and then, of course, the wine’s Bordeaux connection! Herri Mina was established by legendary winemaker Jean-Claude Berrouet, who was winemaker at Château Pétrus in Pomerol for 44 vintages. A Basque native, Jean-Claude set up Herri Mina as his retirement project so to speak. And he chose to work with Cabernet Franc because, like him, the grape hails from Basque Country (specifically Spain’s País Vasco, around the city of Hondarribia), and working with this grape in Irouléguy was like getting back to his roots. Jean-Claude has less than a hectare of Cabernet Franc vines planted on steep, terraced parcels in the foothills of the Massif d’Arradoy in Irouléguy. To my knowledge, this is the only 100% Cabernet Franc produced in Irouléguy, where the variety is normally a blending partner with Tannat. As I noted, this wine was poured blind, and guests were asked to choose whether it was New World or Old World and then identify the country of origin. While a few people thought that it was French, but not Bordeaux, the wine’s warmer climate energy and contemporary style led many to believe that it was something from the New World. And if you have not had this wine, it does have a certain degree of refinement and polish too it. It is a meticulous and thoughtful wine, with an aura so singular it is hard to place. Though one thing is for certain, this is Cabernet Franc through and through. Lifted, ethereal perfume of sage and balsam, forest berries and cardamom. It was seamless, poised, silky tannins and juicy acidity. No hard edges here, just pure pleasure.
Flight Four
Domaine Lenoir, Chinon 'Les Roches' 1979 (100% Cabernet Franc): This wine was a last minute addition to the line up, which I have to give credit to Max for including it. For those that aren’t familiar with it, Domaine Lenoir, which is now being run by Alain’s son Jérôme, is somewhat shrouded in a bit of mystery. The domaine has just a few hectares of vines planted on the slopes in the commune of Beaumont-en-Véron in the lieu-dit Les Roches and they only make one wine (and the occasional Chinon Blanc). Jérôme, and prior to him Alain, works very traditionally in the cellar, and favours long élevage in barrel, and then further aging in bottle before release. The wines are sporadically released to market (and not in any specific chronological order) in minuscule quantities to only a handful of merchants in France. If you find a Lenoir in the wild (outside France), it is possible that it may have come from the cellar of a collector that was then sold at auction. Prior to this 1979, I had a 2006 in May of 2022, and the 1991 just a couple days before this dinner with Humberto, who pulled a bottle from his cellar for us to enjoy. For many of the guests at the dinner, this 1979 was their favourite wine of the line up. For me, it was a little over the hill, but for a brief moment, it showed the Lenoir skeleton of structure (a backbone of acid that leads creating a very linear frame married with delicacy and nuance, and then crescendos to finish with density and roundness), and it was flecked with loads of dried red fruit and florals, dried thyme, mushroom. The life of the 1979 was fleeting, but extremely interesting to taste.
Couly-Dutheil, Chinon 'Clos de l’Echo' 1996 (100% Cabernet Franc): The Chinon appellation is fortunate to have a wealth of very historic vineyards that many would consider to be at a “grand cru”-level for Cabernet Franc in the Loire Valley. Couly-Dutheil counts of among their holdings two of such sites: Clos de l’Echo and Clos de l’Olive. Clos de l’Echo is a 17-hectare lieu-dit tucked up behind the Chinon fortress at one of the highest elevations in the appellation (around 98m above sea level). In the 12th century, it is believed the vineyard was in the hands of royalty, and later in the 15th century it was part of the estate of François Rabelais’ father Antoine. Baptiste Dutheil purchased his first hectare here in 1925, and slowly purchased all of the remaining parcels, so today this is a ‘monopole’ holding for the domaine. The soils here are known as “cornuelles,” which is a type of hydromorphic clay mixed with flint, and is known to produce some pretty powerful wines. 1996 was an excellent vintage, and considered one of the best of the decade, and produced wines with great depth and concentration. This 1996 Clos de l’Echo was alive and well, and it excellent condition and state of evolution. What would’ve been a powerful, perhaps even a bit of a monolithic wine in its youth, the flesh, roundness and structure of the 1996 has softened, and it is balanced by plenty freshness. Complex and layered, with a mix of fresh and dried darker fruit, layers of cocoa, potting soil and crushed rocks, this was among my favourite wines of the dinner.
Clos Rougeard, Saumur-Champigny 'Les Poyeux' 2009 (100% Cabernet Franc): We closed out the conversation on the Loire with one of the greats, and possibly THE estate that helped put great Loire Valley Cabernet Franc into the spotlight. I never pass up the opportunity to talk about Clos Rougeard and the Foucault brothers contribution to the world of Cabernet Franc. Nady and the late Charly Foucault were the last generation in a long lineage of wine-growers to be at the helm at Clos Rougeard, which has a history that can be traced by to 1664. Following Charly’s death in 2014, the domaine was purchased the owners of Château Montrose in 2017. During the late 1990s and into the early 2000s, word slowly spread about the exceptional wines made by Clos Rougeard, and the wines became somewhat of a “cult” phenomenon. The brothers also nurtured many young vignerons (Romain Guiberteau, Thierry Germain, Antoine Sanzay, Arnaud Lambert to name a few), who have since gone on to elevate Loire Valley Cabernet Franc with their own wines. Of Clos Rougeard’s single vineyard wines, Les Poyeux was always the most “accessible” and available. Because of Clos Rougeard, Les Poyeux today is one of the few lieux-dits in Saumur-Champigny that is widely recognized. A truly exceptional site, the 30-hectare Les Poyeux is located in Chacé on predominantly a south-facing slope with a lot of variability in terms of soils from parcel to parcel, and there are many vignerons that have parcels here (for this reason, I often refer to it as the “Clos de Vougeot” for Cabernet Franc in Saumur-Champigny). The Clos Rougeard parcels are just about dead centre, and there is a lot more sand in the topsoil in their parcels (over the Middle Turoninan tuffeau), which is part of what I think contributes to the exceptional perfume I always get on the Les Poyeux bottling from Clos Rougeard. I was fortunate enough to enjoy a bottle of the 2009 Les Poyeux on my birthday in 2021, so to enjoy it again for this event was extra special. This wine is in an excellent spot in its evolution. 2009 was a warm vintage, and it shows the forwardness of a vintage “solaire.” This is a serious, contemplative wine and much deserving of its place as one of the world’s great Cabernet Francs.
Flight Five - The grande finale of the dinner certainly lived up to its name, finishing with two wines that are top examples of Cabernet Franc-minded St-Emilion.
Château Angélus, St-Emilion 1er Grand Cru Classé 2002 (55% Cabernet Franc, 45% Merlot): Since 1782, Château Angélus has been in the hands of the de Boüard family. It is the only estate in St-Emilion to have occupied all three of the local rankings with it being elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé A status in 2012. Located in the commune of St-Emilion west of the village and the limestone plateau, the château’s parcels are dotted across 3 main terroirs: the higher slopes with shallow clay over limestone, the lower slopes sandy-clay over limestone, and sandy limestone over deep clay. While Cabernet Franc has always been an integral part of the Angélus DNA, Hubert de Boüard attributes the rise in quality of Château Angélus’ grand vin in the 1990s and into the 2000s to the replanting of their Cabernet Franc on the best sites for the variety, and putting a lot more effort into making ‘better’ Cabernet Franc in the vineyard and cellar. This work is still continuing extensively today, which I learned first hand from viticulturist François Lezain and winemaker Benjamin Laforet when I visited Château Angélus in June 2023. The 2002 was an impressive wine. Not the “best” vintage, but a solid one, and it was absolutely singing the day of the dinner, as it if just woke up that morning and said “I’m ready now! Time to drink me!” Full bodied, opulent, with plenty of flesh and texture, balanced by mouth-watering freshness. All components of the wine were beautifully integrated. Complete from start to finish. I suspect that the 2002 will continue to improve and gain complexity over the next five to seven years.
Château Cheval Blanc, St-Emilion 1er Grand Cru Classé 1995 (53% Cabernet Franc, 47% Merlot): A Cabernet Franc-themed Bordeaux dinner would not be complete with out THE reference for Cabernet Franc on the Right Bank - Château Cheval Blanc. Probably the only property in St-Emilion that has become synonymous with Cabernet Franc, Cheval Blanc defines their wine by the presence of this grape in the blend, regardless of the proportions that appear in the final assemblage of their grand vin. And indeed, Cabernet Franc is rarely the dominant variety. Over the last 20 vintages, Cabernet Franc has been more than 50% of the final blend in the grand vin 5 times, and even in those instances, it is less than 60% of the blend. However, all of the decisions the château takes in the vineyard and cellar is with Cabernet Franc in mind, putting this grape forward in tandem with showcasing the vintage characteristics that year. Unlike many of the top classified châteaux in St-Emilion, Cheval Blanc is located in the far northwestern part of the appellation right next door to Pomerol on the first Quaternary terrace. Their 45 plots are planted 60/40 Cabernet Franc to Merlot, and their soils are comprised of three main textures: clay, gravel and sand. There is no limestone in this part of St-Emilion (poking holes in the notion that only limestone soils produce the greatest wines). 1995 was a very good vintage in Bordeaux, similar to 1990 and 1986 in many ways. This wine was absolutely captivating - sensorily speaking but also emotionally. Fully mature, it showed all the hallmarks of a wine with great pedigree from Bordeaux: layered, complex, harmonious. Soft supple tannins were fully integrated with the fruit and acid. The Cabernet Franc structure and perfume played off the flesh of the Merlot to make for a beautifully complete wine. While my experience with this wine is limited, my gut tells me that the 1995 is approaching its peak. If you have this in your cellar, it is one to consider enjoying now or over the next five to seven years for maximum pleasure.
