Château Angelus 2022

A vintage of precision and aromatic purity, this is one of the finest Angélus wines ever made. A blend of 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc, the nose is heady and complex, filled with dark chocolate, cherries, blackcurrants, violets, and rose. On the palate, it’s silky, scintillating, and fresh, with a crystalline clarity and balance that feels almost effortless. Chalky yet creamy tannins add depth, while flashes of heat and liquorice spice on the finish bring structure and length. Juicy, deep, and incredibly moreish, this dances across the palate with finesse and vibrancy. A wine of energy, persistence, and sheer sophistication. 100% new oak (50% Cab Franc in foudre). 3.7 pH. 75 IPT. Organic.

This is a powerful Angelus, showing incredible depth and intensity, with tannins totally melted into the wine, giving remarkable energy for such a young bottle. It reminds me of the great reds of the 1940s or 1950s but with modern precision. Full-bodied yet agile, it has endless length, with blackberries, crushed stone, light herbs, and dark chocolate throughout. Such balance. Al dente. 60% merlot and 40% cabernet franc. So attractive now, but it will age forever.

The 2022 Angélus has an understated nose, tightly wound black fruit, cedar and touches of pencil box. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, quite structured, perhaps with a little Cabernet Franc in the mix? Linear on the finish, you would not guess this to be from such a warm growing season. This really seems to benefit from the addition of the old Cabernet Franc vines. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting in London.

On the palate, the wine is refined, elegant, poised, and precise. The sensation of purity is almost unequaled. Finesse and power are readily apparent, with a vibrancy that allows for length, expansiveness, and energy. There is a boatload of concentration on the palate, but the focus is on its refinement, balance, and sophistication. The refreshing touch of mint and sea salt in the finish is the perfect accompaniment to the wine's sensuous, velvety finish. As this ages, it is a candidate for an upgrade to triple digits. The wine blends 60% Merlot with 40% Cabernet Franc. Drink from 2029-2065.

Dark ruby in colour with an opaque core, purple reflections, and subtle brightening on the rim. On the nose, an inviting bouquet of subtle sweet tobacco, a hint of herbs, fine red-berry nuances, delicate nougat, and orange zest in the background. The elegant, silky palate is juicy with ripe cherry fruit, delicately spicy nuances with fine fruit, great freshness, and barely noticeable, finely polished tannins. Already very accessible, this is a delicate food wine with considerable length and great ageing potential.

60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc, 40 hl/ha, pH 3.65 – this matters at 14.5% alc. Densely interwoven bouquet, pure red cherry fruit, fresh blackcurrant nectar, delicate graphite note and dried rosemary. On the sublime, well‑trained palate with silky texture, balanced verve, wonderful extract richness, a tight cocoa‑like tannin framework, all precise and tautly focused. In the concentrated, long‑lasting and pure finish, red‑berry contours, juniper, tarragon and a noble astringency.

The added density of the vintage is clear, and this is extremely impressive: great lift through the palate, a switchback of opulent texture, rich damson, cocoa bean, black tea, sandalwood and incense, flavourful and delivered with grip and tension. Super impressive, 100% new oak for the barrels, with 20% of the production (Cabernet Franc only) aged in large oak casks. September 8 to 29 for the harvest. First year out of the St Emilion ranking, still delivering at the top of the appellation.

A hypnotic, captivating nose that plunges you into a sensory trance, between telluric depths and celestial immensity, crossing aromatic constellations. The fruit, at perfect ripeness, shines with a smiling, masterful elegance. Whiffs of spring rain mingle with floral notes to bring freshness. The palate mirrors the nose, drawing you into this wine’s parallel universe, where a gentle propulsion seems to suspend time. Tannins, as fine as taffeta, caress the palate before fading into a melting, saline finish. A wine you return to, again and again.

So much detail and depth, subtlety and serenity in this bouquet. Merlot and Cabernet Franc are the best of friends, complementing each other to create a consistently convincing synergy—yet even more thrilling in 2022! Gentle and silky on the attack, the wine is quickly set back on the tracks of precision and power, yet in a constructive, ambitious way, with assets devoted to power, freshness and persistence. In 2022 there are brilliant wines, exceptional wines, and then there is this Angélus which is not only exhilarating but moving, fascinating, transparent—and threaded with an innumerable array of details that convey a very clear message: before being a 2022, I am Angélus. That is the key to the vintage!

Logo on the cork: A in a circle (Amorim) Dark, intense, purplish colour. Highly aromatic nose with ripe, subtle fruit, becoming more intense and deeper as the glass is swirled. Broad on the attack and complex through the mid-palate, the wine melts across the palate with a full, rich body and abundant aromatics. It unfolds slowly, powerfully and with nobility into a delicately liquorice-tinged finish that never lets the tannins dominate, all underpinned by great aromatic persistence. Superb! Same note after decanting.

Deeply dark, smoky, cool fireplace, dark cherries, herbs; on the palate very compact, masses of fine tannins caress the fruit, lively acidity, a wine of power, breed and great finesse; it finishes on blood oranges, sour cherries and dark chocolate. A pleasantly fresh, juicy Angelus built for a small eternity.

A densely textured wine, this is rich with tannins and great concentration. The wine has power while also having great elegance and style. Its smoky aroma and dark tannins are impressive. The wine has great potential. Drink from 2028.