Château Cheval Blanc 2006

The brilliant 2006 Cheval Blanc performed better from bottle than from barrel. A blend of equal parts Cabernet Franc and Merlot grown in a superb vineyard site facing La Conseillante and l’Evangile at the very edge of the sandy, gravelly soils of St.-Emilion, it boasts a dense ruby/purple color as well as a sweet perfume of menthol, charcoal, boysenberries, black currants, and hints of cocoa and caramel. Lush, textured, and opulent with superb purity, medium to full body, savory flavors, and sweet, sexy tannins, this stunning Cheval Blanc may be even better than the 2005. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2030.

September rainfall hit St Emilion quite hard, and there was some dilution in the grapes, and careful selection and sorting were required. The 2006 Cheval Blanc has recently shown well but this bottle was not entirely satisfactory, though far from faulty. The nose is ripe and intense, with a grapy raspberry character and considerable poise and finesse. On the palate it's still firm and tannic; it's certainly concentrated, but quite grippy too and lacks the charm of the nose. A long chewy finish makes one wonder how the wine will evolve, but mature Cheval Blanc is unlikely to disappoint.

Tight, needs time and air to develop. This is a structured, firm, strict, tannic style of Cheval Blanc, with a classic, brisk, masculine, red berry character. Others who prefer that style of wine will like it more than I did.

A blend of 55% Merlot and 45% Cabernet Franc, the 2006 Chateau Cheval Blanc is a classic wine from this under-the-radar vintage and offers a perfumed, complex bouquet of red and black fruits, dried flowers, earth, spice box, and tobacco. With medium to full-bodied richness, a pure, elegant texture, ripe tannin and impressive length, it’s approachable today yet will keep for two decades or more.

Dark, deep garnet with purple highlights. A magnificent Cheval-Bouquet, showing leather notes, musk, Irish moss, smoky tones, licorice, and dark berries, cassis, bramble. On the palate, dense yet refined, with racy fruit acidity, an almost mysterious aromatic profile, already deliciously tasting of Cheval Blanc, as usually happens with mature bottles only after ten years. On the one hand, perhaps an early-charming, immensely grand wine that will also age very well. Deep-rooted like the old Cheval Blancs, and could it even become a successor to the 1961? The most convincing and likely greatest wine of the vintage from the Libournais.

55% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Franc. 28 hl/ha. Immense amounts of unusable grapes were left unharvested or sorted out. 62% of the production became Grand Vin. Dark, deep garnet with purple highlights. Gorgeous Cheval bouquet, meaning leather notes, musk, Irish moss, smoky tones, licorice and dark berries, cassis, blackberry brambles. On the palate, the wine is dense yet fine, showing racy fruit acidity, again displaying many black, almost mysterious aromas. It already tastes wonderfully of Cheval Blanc, as usually only bottles with 10 years of age do. So perhaps on the one hand an early-appealing, enormously great wine, yet one that can also age for a very long time. Those who miss the old, particularly profound Cheval will find comfort here. Perhaps it will even be a successor to the 1961? The greatest vintages of Cheval are always based on a low yield per hectare. And that is mathematically the case here as well. The most convincing and probably greatest wine in the Libournais! Wolfi: About the photo: Olivier Berrouet (son of the famous Jean-Claude Berrouet / Ch. Pétrus), at Cheval Blanc since 2004. Previously Haut-Brion, Silver Oak, a few years with a négociant in Paris, then at Ch. Margaux, Romanée-Conti for 6 months, since then oenologist at Cheval Blanc.

Silky, sweet, fruity bouquet with tea, dried fruit, grains, and chocolate. Velvety, dense, multi-layered palate with elegant fruit, fine tannins, musk, concentrated aromatics, and a dense, silky structure. Very long, full finish. 19/20 2015 - 2035

A less exuberant vintage than the 2009 and 2010 that we tasted at the same time, this is a classically knitted-together Cabernet Franc-dominant year, with the emphasis on dark fruits edging towards tertiary brambled character at 17 years old. Mint leaf, tobacco, smoked earth, dried herbs and crushed rose petals. Still plenty of life and grip in this wine, now in its drinking window but with zero rush, and likely to stay at this luscious, inviting moment for decades to come. 50% new oak.

Dark, intense and beautiful color. Moderately intense nose with very ripe fruit. Yet as it evolves in the glass, fresher notes return. The whole clearly evokes Pomerol. Delicate on the attack, flavorful, silky and pleasant mid-palate, the wine develops without any tannic edge, offering plenty of flavor between the mid-palate and the finish. Very good length.