Château Angélus 2023 en Primeur

The transparency of fruit and the finesse is really something here. There’s depth and beauty to the pristine, fresh fruit. Full-bodied and muscular with wonderful tannins that provide tension and form. Subtle and weightless, this is a thought-provoking young wine. 60% merlot and 40% cabernet franc.

The 2023 Château Angélus is 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc that’s fermented in its individual parcels and isn't blended until very late. It's very much in the more fresh, focused, precise style of this château and has a beautiful nose of ripe black raspberries, cassis, spicy wood, melted crayons, and tobacco. This carries to a medium to full-bodied Angélus with remarkable purity, ultra-fine tannins, and beautiful overall balance. It's certainly not the biggest or richest Angélus, but it has incredible purity, focus, and elegance.

Gorgeous nose, floral and scented with roses and violets, expressive strawberries and raspberries and some herbal elements. Full and filling, but soft and smooth, almost crushed velvet in texture. It’s not so tense and straight but has a solid backbone of freshness and plush fruit but very cool. It’s more on the structured side than overt acidity, serious but still with crunchy blueberries, chalky blackcurrant, lots of graphite and minerality on the finish. Less fruit forward than some but layered with complexity - a subtle opulence. Fleshy ripe tannins with mouthwatering acidity adding a serious touch. It’s missing that Angelus hug on the mid palate, but I like it a lot and you can’t fault the refinement and precision on show. It’s got body, length, tannins, crunch, freshness, and a vein of minerality underpinning the expression. 3.65pH. Harvest September 14 to October 1.

A classic blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc, the 2023 Angélus reflects this estate's continuing evolution with regard to ripeness, extraction and élevage choices, offering up attractive aromas of dark berries and plums mingled with hints of mint, potpourri, rose petals, vine smoke and orange zest. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and supple, with a velvety attack that segues into a core of pure, pillowy fruit framed by supple, powdery tannins, it's cool and harmonious, concluding with a long, perfumed finish. This is a terrific effort that foregrounds the vintage and the terroir at their best.

Style aérien, sans faiblesse dans son déroulé en bouche, avec un fruit plein de vitalité et des notes de fleurs et de poivre. Grande pureté. Le cabernet franc dans l’assemblage (40 %) sublime le cœur et la fin de bouche.