Chateau Cheval Blanc 2015

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2015 Cheval Blanc is still incredibly primary at this very youthful stage. With coaxing, it unfurls to reveal beguiling notions of ripe black cherries, mulberries, licorice, baking spices and smoked meats with touches of incense and potpourri plus wafts of cast iron pan and crushed rocks. Full-bodied, very rich, very firm/taut and with very ripe, fine-grained tannins, it allows a glimpse at its incredible depth of flavors with a very long multi-layered finish. Wow."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "It can be a dangerous combination for all the right reasons when you blend decadent sensuality with velvety tannins and layers of silky fruits. You cannot help but devour the wine far too quickly. Concentrated, full and rich, the fruit glides across your palate effortlessly. There is lift, volume, length and complexity. This is a wine for the future which will easily earn a legendary status as it ages evolves and matures. If you cannot afford it, make you find friends that can, as this is a wine you need to taste."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "Made with 45% Cabernet Franc, this great wine offers a beautiful, rich and perfumed character. It was an exceptional vintage for the estate, which incorporated fruit from parcels of the vineyard that would normally be used for the chateau's second wine into this blend. It is packed with black-fruit flavors and broad tannins, with a background of juicy acidity and a firm structure. Drink from 2027."

JAMES SUCKLING: "Phenomenal aromas of cherries, flowers, blackberries and sandalwood. Pure fruit. Full-bodied, dense and polished with incredible tannin quality like the finest, densest silk ball. In perfect proportions. Compact. Seamless and endless. Gorgeous to taste now but give it six or seven years to understand it better."

DECANTER: "Powerful aromas leap out of the glass – dark red fruit characters, violets, spices and savoury balsamic notes. A top wine with so much purity and finesse that it's hard to tell there is 14.5% alcohol here. An abundance of super-ripe tannins will keep this going strong until at least 2050. Majestic and memorable. Due to exceptional quality, there was no Petit Cheval produced in 2015 with 91% of the crop bottled as the Grand Vin."

JEB DUNNUCK: "I continue to absolutely love the 2015 Chateau Cheval Blanc. It’s one of those powerful, sexy, yet also weightless and elegant wines that’s going to drink well all its life. Checking in as a blend of 55% Merlot and 45% Cabernet Franc brought up in new barrels, it offers a kaleidoscope of aromas and flavors led by beautiful sweet fruits as well as incredible floral, spice, and graphite nuances. It’s full-bodied, with a rich, rounded, opulent texture, sweet tannins, and a blockbuster finish. As with a lot of 2015s, it has the sweetness of fruit and ripe tannin that allows it to drink well today, but it’s going to be very long-lived and have 3-4 decades of prime drinking."

FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung, feine dunkle Beerenfrucht, ein Hauch von Edelschokolade, exotische Gewürznuancen, facettenreich und mineralisch. Kraftvoll, reife Herzkirschen, stoffige, zugleich seidige Tannine, feine Struktur, besitzt eine große Energie und Länge, ungemein vielschichtig, bleibt minutenlang haften, großes Reifepotenzial. Auf den Zweitwein Petit Cheval wurde in diesem Jahr zur Gänze verzichtet."

WINE SPECTATOR: "A lovely sanguine hint leads off, followed by racy, elegant juniper, tobacco, red currant and damson plum notes that move in unison. Broadens and deepens, adding notes of currant preserves, warm ganache and smoldering tobacco, with a swath of loamy structure. Yet even as the bass line increases in volume through the finish, this maintains purity and poise. Should deliver some stunning aromatics at peak, which will take awhile to achieve. Best from 2025 through 2045. 8,250 cases made."

WEINWISSER: "55 % Merlot, 45 % Cabernet Franc. Tiefes Purpur, satt in der Mitte, Granatschimmer am Rand. Das Bouquet ist noch sehr zurückhaltend und zeigt viele dunkle Beeren, Edelhölzer, Jasmintee, mitteldunkles Malz und besonders viele, reife Pflaumen. Im Gaumen mit viel Souplesse beginnend, cremige Tannine, wirkt nicht besonders schwer und setzt voll auf Eleganz. Im Finale Kräuter, Lakritze und wieder herrlich süsse Malznoten. Ein erhabener Cheval-Blanc, völlig klar ausgerichtet, der ohne grosse Kapriolen sehr alt werden kann. P.S. Es gibt heuer keinen Zweitwein (Le Petit Cheval). Es habe praktisch keine schlechten Chargen gegeben, alles sei auf Topniveau gewesen."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Tasted blind. Neat, low key on the nose. Opulent, round and fleshy palate, then neat, dry finish. Pretty smart."