Château Cheval Blanc 2017

This is tight and very tannic with a linear and steely backbone of texture. Full-bodied, compacted and complete. Muscular and flexing it but polished and toned. Wow. There is 6% cabernet sauvignon in the blend, which may be giving this even more strength. Very, very long. Very Left Bank in terms of the power and depth.

Purplish purple. Intense, complex bouquet, marked by notes of violets, licorice and black pepper. Pleasant notes of red berries. Delicious and slightly creamy attack. On the palate, the wine has a beautiful texture. It has fat, class and a beautiful aromatic intensity, perfectly supported by the acid structure. The tannins are recessed but offer perspective and a suave touch on the finish. A powerful, complex wine that will reveal itself over time. This Horse manages to assimilate power and race while leaving a surprising place for sweetness and fruit on the palate, until the end. A very large Horse. For the day after tomorrow. 2024–2047

Part of Top St-Emilion 2017 wines. A sense of forward motion here makes you smile - a reaction that's missing in many wines this year. The tannins push their way right through the palate, but cradle the cassis and bilberry fruit rather than smother it, helped by the fact that floral and smoky aromatics rise up. There's good persistence and you get that little kick and dance of minerality. The precision engineering is clear, but the overall feeling is simply of cohesion and enjoyment. 3.65ph. 100% new oak, but without a trace even now at this early stage. Approximately 60% of the wine this year came from the gravelly plots which were less affected by the frost, which accounts for a slightly higher level of Cabernet Sauvignon than usual. They used perhaps 1% of secondary budding in this blend (five weeks behind schedule at bud-break and then around 15 days by harvest) and kept picking from 15 September to 11 October - an extremely long schedule compared to most estates in 2017. With around 30% loss to frost, there will be 50,000 bottles of Cheval in 2017, compared to 116,000 in 2016. 21hl/ha yield this year, 75% destined for the grand vin. Drinking Window 2026 - 2040