Château L'Évangile
The vintage
After a mild winter, the spring was cool with some frost warnings in April and early May, and growth was rather slow with bud break on 25 March.
Flowering went smoothly around 4 June followed by heavy rain at the start of the month. There were two heatwaves during the summer, after which August was relatively clement, punctuated by a few welcome rainy spells. Together, these factors resulted in a uniform véraison (when the grapes change colour) and uniform ripening. 20 mm of rain at the beginning of September enabled us to obtain grapes in perfect health that had reached optimal maturity. Despite the berries being slightly lighter, the Cabernet Franc revealed great elegance and freshness, perfectly accompanying the power of the Merlot. The harvests took place from 13 September to 3 October.
Location
The Pomerol appellation stretches on a plateau on the right bank of the Dordogne river, about 40km north east of Bordeaux. In Pomerol, merlot is king. The characteristics of Pomerol’s clay soil give to this varietal an expression like nowhere else in the world.
Terroir
L’Evangile’s vineyard covers 22 hectares at the heart of the Pomerol plateau, sharing the appellation’s best terroirs with two other prestigious properties. Here, through a mystery of geology, the heavy green clay soils are covered by a bed of gravel. These high quality soils are the source of the estate’s great merlot, and the secret of Chateau l’Evangile’s extraordinary power and depth.
Winemaking
Alcoholic fermentation take place in temperature-controlled concrete vats and lasted for about 10 days. Pumping over and maceration times are adjusted for each vat, according to the terroir and the maturity of the tannins. Total maceration times is between 21 and 25 days. After maceration, the wine is transferred in new oak barrels for the malolactic fermentation, followed by 18 months of ageing. The barrels are made by the Tonnellerie des Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) in Pauillac.
Tasting
Intense colour with glints of garnet.
The initial nose presents elegant notes of mocha underscored by resinous scents reminiscent of Swiss pine. Notes of wild blueberries develop with aeration, enhancing the bouquet’s complexity. The palate is very smooth with silky tannins, and promising balance for the decades to come.
Alcohol content
15.5
Grapes
Merlot
: 83 %
Cabernet franc
: 16 %
Cabernet sauvignon
: 1 %