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2012 Domaine de Chevalier, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

  • Red
  • Dry
  • Medium Bodied
  • Cabernet Sauvignon (65%),Merlot (30%),Petit Verdot (5%)
Ready - at best
Robert Parker
92+/100
Jancis Robinson MW
16+/20
17.5+/20
James Molesworth
90-93/100
Robert Parker
92-95/100
Product: 20128003298
2012 Domaine de Chevalier, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

Description

This is one of my top five ‘must haves’ this year…again! I have bought it for my own cellar every year since 2004. It’s just heavenly and you know, because Olivier Bernard is a pragmatic realist, that it is going to be priced at a level where we can all indulge ourselves a little. It is multi-layered, sophisticated but still generous. Pure yet decadent, it has such silky tannins that you have to go digging about in the glass to find any at all. It also has the honour of having the longest finish of any wine we tasted during the en primeur tasting week. This is an outstanding wine from 2012. Drink 2018-2035.
Simon Staples, Asia Director
Colour Red
Sweetness Dry
Vintage 2012
Maturity Ready - at best
Grape List Cabernet Sauvignon (65%),Merlot (30%),Petit Verdot (5%)
Body Medium Bodied
Producer Domaine De Chevalier

Critics reviews

Robert Parker 92+/100
Very floral and elegant with raspberry and blackcurrant fruit mixed with toasty oak/vanillin, followed by a medium to full-bodied, stylish, polished wine that is the quintessentially refined style of Pessac-Lognan. Nevertheless, the complexity and nuance has yet to fully emerge. This medium to full-bodied Domaine de Chevalier is poised for a bright future. It is tight and backward now, as well as restrained aromatically, but everything is there for the future. Forget it for 5-7 years and drink it over the following 30 years.Robert M. Parker, Jr. - 30/04/2015
Drink 2020 - 2045
Robert Parker, RobertParker.com (Apr 2015)
Jancis Robinson MW 16+/20
Very dark crimson. Very concentrated and interesting on the nose. Sweet and voluptuous. Perhaps lacking a teensy amount of energy and drive. And the tannins are a little drying on the end. Acidity and grip are marked. Very much work in progress. As usual. jancis_robinson_mw MW, JancisRobinson.com, 19 Apr 2013
Drink 2020 - 2045
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2013)
17.5+/20
Velvety black-red, impressive concentration of ripe, slightly leafy fruit, good depth and clarity, slight green.
Drink 2020 - 2045
Decanter.com
James Molesworth 90-93/100
Fresh and nicely polished, with a rounded feel to the mix of plum skin, cherry preserve and currant notes. Alluring spice and dark tea notes fill in the finish. Sneakily long. james_molesworth, Wine Spectator, April 8 2013
Drink 2020 - 2045
James Molesworth, WineSpectator.com (Apr 2013)
Robert Parker 92-95/100
One of the stars of the vintage, it boasts a dense purple color as well as a big, sweet bouquet of red and black currants, graphite, subtle flowers and well-integrated, toasty oak. Impressively built rich and medium to full-bodied without losing the quintessential elegance and finesse for which this famous estate is renowned, the 2012 Domaine de Chevalier is filled with purity, equilibrium and balance. The tannins are sweet enough that this wine should be accessible when released, and will last for 15-20 years. Is this a modern day clone of their brilliant 1953 (which I drank from magnum at Bern’s Steak House in November for less than $500!)? I was joking with proprietor Olivier Bernard, who is now the president of the Union des Grands Crus, that his position seems to be accompanied by much higher scores from wine critics. Nevertheless, there is no question that Domaine de Chevalier has been on a relatively hot streak lately, and this 2012 is a beauty. robert_parker - Wine Advocate - Apr 2013
Drink 2020 - 2045
Robert Parker, RobertParker.com (Apr 2013)

About this wine

Cabernet Sauvignon

The most famous red wine grape in the world and one of the most widely planted.
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Domaine de Chevalier

Domaine de Chevalier is one of the few Graves estates to produce both first class reds and whites. The property was purchased by the Ricard family in 1865 and remained in their hands until it was bought by the Bernard distilling company in 1983. Domaine De Chevalier has 35 hectares of vines and red wine accounts for 80% of the production. Made from a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc, the wine is fermented in temperature-controlled, stainless steel vats and then matured in oak barriques (50% new) for 18 months. Domaine de Chevalier is fortunate to have such a fine team to run its affairs. Olivier, whose family business owns the estate, is the outgoing but canny administrator whilst Rémi Edange is hands-on, knowing every vine and every barrel. Whilst their white wines have always been amongst the very finest, the reds were simpler affairs. But from the 1995 vintage onwards greater flair and concentration was in evidence. The quality curve is now further accentuated by the team's bold move to appoint Stéphane Derenoncourt, of La Mondotte fame, as consultant winemaker. Domaine De Chevalier is classified as a Graves Cru Classé.
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