The vineyard

Château Angélus watches over a 27-hectare vineyard, whose vines are 38 years old on average and are located on the southern hillside of Saint-Émilion. This terroir extends over clay-limestone soils on the upper part and clay-sand-limestone soils on the hillside.

The vintage

In the memory of winegrowers, we had never seen this: 3 summer months without water. With beneficial rain in mid-September and a most remarkable Indian summer, the Château Angélus team harvested grapes of exceptional maturity from October 4 to 21.

Assembly

Château Angélus 2016 is the result of a blend of Merlot (60%) and Cabernet Franc (40%). This blend perfectly expresses the surprising and exceptional character of the vintage.

The nose mixes from the first olfaction sensual and deep fragrances of Lebanese cedar and bitter orange peel with an impression of freshness and great tension. Allowed to breathe, the aromas of black fruits (blackberry and blueberry) reveal themselves greedily but not excessively, with salivating brilliance and purity. Breathing this wine is like biting into grapes. At this stage the bouquet, so broad aromatically, is far from giving the full measure of the richness of the wine, without leaving it a good decade before it really opens up.

The attack is precise and dynamic with a fleshy, velvety mid-palate on a refined and creamy tannic body. Ideally balanced, this wine with impressive volume already enjoys great drinkability. This superb set registers this Château Angélus 2016 in the exceptional wines and of very long guard.