CHÂTEAU BEYCHEVELLE

2017 4ème Cru Classé Saint Julien

EN PRIMEUR

Tasted at the chateau on the deck above the glorious new winery building. This rolls across the palate with just a touch of suede-like scrape to the tannins - but the feel is dominated by plump ripe cherry scented fruit. At a tasting of St Juliens this stood out for the baked notes to the plummy flesh - a ripe and rich middle, which is fun and easy to taste - but perhaps is less focused than some of its neighbours at this stage. No lack of pleasure though, for now. 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc. Rating: 90-92 L&S (Apr 2018)

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The 2017 Beychevelle seems to have calmed down on the nose in recent months, far more even-tempered with still gorgeous pure red berry fruit laced with pomegranate and espresso. But now I find more Saint-Julien in my glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannins. This feels very cohesive, poised and delineated with a seductive, cassis-tinged finish. Given market prices, I might plump for the 2017 at the moment. Wonderful. Tasted at the Beychevelle vertical at the property. Drinking range: 2024 - 2050 Rating: 94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Mar 2023)

The 2017 Beychevelle is a luscious, extroverted beauty. An exotic mélange of super-ripe dark cherry, red plum, pomegranate, espresso, licorice and blood orange build as this potent, unctuous Saint-Julien opens up in the glass. The tannins need time to soften but should not be much of an issue in another few years' time. I very much like the push and pull of ripeness and energy in the 2017. In a word: memorable. Tasted two times. Drinking range: 2025 - 2047 Rating: 95 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Mar 2020)

The 2017 Beychevelle was, atypically for the vintage, quite ostentatious from barrel. Not in bottle! It has retained an atypical rich and generous bouquet that you could almost mistake for the following vintage with scents of red cherries, boysenberry, hints of crème de cassis and violet. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and fine acidity. It feels a little compact at the moment although I admire its focus. Picking at straws, it just feels abrupt on the finish, scrapers out of the exit door a bit too hastily. As such, this is a good Beychevelle, but not one of the best in recent years. Tasted twice with consistent notes. Drinking range: 2022 - 2040 Rating: 92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 2020)

The 2017 Beychevelle was cropped at 54hl/ha between 18 September and 3 October, matured in around 60% new oak with 13.4° alcohol. It has a very ripe blueberry, almost iodine-scented bouquet that is much more extroverted than its peers (like the 2016 last year.) The palate is medium-bodied with sweet black cherry and boysenberry fruit, and plenty of crushed violet. The palate is ripe and succulent; a sweet core of blue and black fruit here although perhaps its neighbor across the road, Branaire Ducru, displays a little more terroir at this early stage. Maybe that is because of the saignée? I would just like to see a little more restraint come through in bottle while I noticed greater precision developing during the 30 minutes the sample spent in my glass. Drinking range: 2021 - 2040 Rating: 90-92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2018)

Deep crimson with purple rim. Tangy, slightly wild black fruit, more bramble than cassis. Smooth, rounded and rather gentle but still persistent. Supple tannins already, though they may be deceptive. Drinking range: 2024 - 2036 Rating: 16.5 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2018)

This is a fine expression of St-Julien, with extremely pretty aromatics and brambly, juicy black fruits that remain soft and persistent through the palate, with the tiniest hint of acidity tightening the tannins. It's not as expressive as in 2016, but that was exceptional, though this is certainly a wine to recommend in 2017. Drinking range: 2026 - 2040 Rating: 92 Jane Anson, Decanter (Apr 2018)

Only 52% of the production went into the 2017 Château Beychevelle (they normally shoot for 60%), and the blend is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc that’s still aging in 60% new oak. This inky purple-colored beauty gives up loads of blue fruits, black cherries, underbrush, and a touch of minerality in a medium to full-bodied, pretty, elegant package that’s very much in the style of the vintage. This estate has been on a serious roll lately, and the 2017 isn’t going to break the trend. Tasted twice. Rating: 92-94 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Apr 2018)

Very fine tannins already with a solid core of blackberry and blueberry character. Hints of flowers. Full-bodied, well-integrated and tight, not to mention fresh and long. Rating: 93-94 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2018)

This has a soft core of pure plum and cherry preserve flavors. Light cedar, vanilla and tobacco notes fill in on the finish. Very rounded, displaying a jammy feel rather than the vintage’s overt freshness. A bit of an anomaly. Rating: 90-93 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2018)

The harvest on the Beychevelle vineyards kicked off on September 18th with the Merlot, finishing on the 22nd, and the picking of the Cabernet Sauvignon started straight away on the 23rd, lasting a little longer, finishing on October 3rd. The wines were vinified in the new cellars, first used only in the 2016 vintage. The blend is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc, the alcohol is 13.5% and total acidity 3.4 g/l. The total yield was 54 hl/ha, so certainly no suggestion of frost here. The élevage will be in oak, including 60% new. It has a fresh and convincing nose of pretty red cherry fruit, with a little vanilla and praline overlay. The palate shows real charm, a medium-bodied substance, with freshness but also breadth to the wine, quite elegantly formed, with a little praline oak wrapping. Overall it feels composed, complete, harmonious, fresh and balanced, with appropriate grip for the substance of the wine, and a little medium-bodied substance on the palate. A nice effort. Rating: 92-94 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2018)

St Julien Quatrième cru 1855 Jean-Louis Nogaret de la Valette, the first Duke of Epernon, was a powerful man. He was an Admiral and the Governor of Guyenne under King Henri III and in deference to him, so it is said, ships passing his estate on the River Gironde would dip their sails - this "baisse-voile" (or "bacha velo" in the local Gascon tongue) became "Beychevelle", and accounts for the presence of a rather fanciful ship on the label. The griffon at the prow of said ship echos the griffon in Greek mythology who guarded Dionysus's wine goblet. The fine château was built in the 18th Century, extended in the 19th, and has recently been restored. The vineyards are 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot with a little each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Wines are aged in wood for 18 months, with 50% of the barriques being new each year.