Domaine de Chevalier 2019

Very lush and forward, with a lovely wave of warmed plum reduction, cassis and blackberry preserve flavors. Features a subtle rumble of dark earth and warm stone through the finish, where licorice and apple wood accents also peek in. Delivers spine for form, but this is going to provide its best showing in the medium-term, as the fruit is so precocious. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2023 through 2035. 10,000 cases made.

Beautiful fragrance on the nose, blackcurrant and floral reflections with violets. Smells expressive and round. Smooth on the palate, filling but calm and controlled. Suave and sophisticated, plump with lovely high acidity that lifts the palate and creates a nice tangy contrast to the soft spices and the clear minerality. Where the 2018 has more muscle and fleshiness the 2019 has more depth and class. It's fun, playful, clean, the acidity is gorgeous and this will carry to a long life. Still a baby, I wouldn't drink this right now, but this has exceptional potential and I love the minty freshness and salty stone touches at the end. Sweet, succulent and precise. Gorgeous. 4% Cabernet Franc completes the blend.

Beautiful, ripe redcurrants, bay leaf, violets and raspberries on the nose. Full-bodied with firm and very tight tannins that are polished and layered. Crushed stones highlight the beautiful blue fruit. Poised and refined. 60% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 6% petit verdot and 4% cabernet franc. Try after 2026.

The 2019 Domaine de Chevalier is pure, silky and exceptionally beautiful. The 2019 is all in reserve today. Sweet red berry fruit, mint, spice and blood orange lend brilliance to this understated, super-classy Pessac-Léognan red. Lifted floral aromatics and silky tannins grace this exquisite, wonderfully polished wine. Tasted two times.

Elegant and refined, the wine is medium to full-bodied, and quickly focuses you on its core of smoky red pit fruits and berries, espresso, herbs, forest leaf, and tobacco. Soft, polished, and fresh, there is length, purity, energy, complexity, and character here in spades, all perfectly wrapped up with its silky tannins and soft, sexy, harmonious finish. This should age and evolve for at least 3 decades or more. Drink from 2029–2055.

Dark ruby garnet, purple reflections, delicate brightening at the rim. Fine ripe plum fruit, subtle hints of nougat, black cherries, a touch of orange zest. Elegant, fresh cherry on the palate, lively structure, well-integrated ripe tannins, mineral and fresh, already accessible, very good length, shows development and certain ageing potential.

Great intensity and depth with fine oak, toast and spice notes with cigar box, layers of inky dark fruit, cassis and floral notes. Very dense and fresh palate with layers of digest dark fruit, powdery tannin and a very long lingering finish.

I loved the 2019 Domaine De Chevalier, which is unquestionably up with the crème de la crème of the vintage. A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, and 5% Petit Verdot that saw just 35% new oak, it sports a dense purple hue as well as a killer, quintessential Graves bouquet of darker black fruits, scorched earth, truffle, cold fireplace, tobacco, and graphite. More medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has brilliant purity, ultra-fine tannins, flawless balance, and a great, great finish. It's not a blockbuster but has this incredible sense of class, balance, and finesse while being rich and concentrated. It's a gorgeous wine, and wine lovers will adore being able to compare this side by side with the 2015, 2016, and 2018 over the coming 3-4 decades.

65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot. Opaque, almost black purple. A beguiling elixir of Alpine blueberries and freshly picked blackberries, followed by licorice, light malt, and milk chocolate. On the palate it’s elegant, with ultra-soft tannins and gorgeous extract sweetness; the tannins already feel integrated, then the wine surges forward thanks to its magical verve and caresses the entire mouth. Graceful finish with dark-berry contours, juniper, and a delicate, cocoa-like astringency. Perfectionist Olivier Bernard once again shows all his skill. For lovers of finesse, a safe bet; for everyone else, just one word: BUY! A small tip on the side: L'Esprit de Chevalier is one of the best second wines of the appellation this year! Reminds Olivier of 2016, 2001—nothing overdone! The wines are balanced!

Kunz barrel sample 2020: (65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot) Concentrated, complex, velvety, powerful bouquet; blackcurrant, plum, dark chocolate, liquorice, mocha cream. Densely woven, multi-layered, elegant, fresh palate with dark, refined fruit, plenty of fine tannins, a finely muscular, elegant structure, varied dark aromatics, and a very long, full, delicately bitter finish. Has further potential.

Deep, dark, velvety bouquet: cassis, plums, fine licorice, mint, delicate herbal notes. Velvety, full-bodied palate with creamy dark fruit, plenty of fine tannins, a finely muscular structure, complex, powerful aromatics, and a long, aromatic finish. 18/20 2027 - 2050

This is just gorgeous, you see exactly where it is going, with waves of unfussy but powerful black fruit aromatics; a beautiful wine that is full of density and complexity, pared back with restrained cassis and bilberry at this point. Hints of cocoa bean, tobacco, slate, truffle and smoked earth coming through, that will no doubt build over the next few years in bottle. Tasted twice, two months apart, both times hugely successful, easy to recommend. In organic conversion.

The Domaine de Chevalier 2019 has a deep garnet-purple color. It sashays out with gorgeous notions of stewed plums, warm cassis, and kirsch, followed by touches of potpourri, cedar, and fragrant earth. The medium-bodied palate delivers firm, fine-grained tannins and a racy backbone to frame the intense, bright, youthful fruit, finishing long and perfumed.

A rich, hedonistic, captivating bouquet with notes of dark fruits (blackcurrant), stone, charcoal and Indian spices. There is a touch of magic in its melted, seamless texture on the palate, so well integrated that one could mistake it for the caress of a hand that seems to melt into the skin. The palate shows lovely freshness and finishes with beautiful bitters.

Subtle, inviting notes of red berries followed by spices and a hint of eucalyptus. A juicy, gourmand attack. As with the bouquet, it is subtlety that defines the palate. The tannins are fine and aligned with a crisp, tangy structure. This balanced, promising wine, with a fruity finish, shows good cellaring potential.

Logo on the cork: DIAM30 Dark, intense, and beautiful color. Very aromatic nose, delicate, fruity, pure, subtle, and slightly vanilla-scented. Soft on the attack, particularly fruity mid-palate, supported by a melting body and a refined touch, the wine gains breadth and expression in the second half of the palate. It finishes long on fine, ever-aromatic tannins. It’s very good.

In this wine, rich tannins are beautifully polished by the 16 to 20 months in wood. The black fruits, from the 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, are structured, giving the wine considerable potential. Still coming into balance, the wine will likely be ready from 2027.