At the end of October 2011, we held a spectacular tasting at Farr Vintners of all 25 years of Château Angélus made by proprietor/winemaker Hubert de Bouard since he took over the family property, aged 28, in 1985. All the vintages were served in magnums, which we had shipped directly from the cellars of the Château for this event. It was hosted by Hubert himself and attended by such wine luminaries as Jancis Robinson MW, Tim Atkin MW, Sebastian Payne MW, Stephen Brook, Steven Spurrier (Decanter Magazine), Neal Martin (eRobertParker.com), Anthony Rose (The Independent), Michael Schuster (the World of Fine Wine) and Joss (not Josh) Fowler of vinolent.net (well worth a look)!
The Impressive Parade of Magnums
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The wines were served in chronological order from youngest to oldest. We started with the 2009, which had been bottled just 5 weeks previously on September 15th. All scores are my own (not the group average)
2009 – produced from the classic Angélus blend of 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc. A very black colour. Huge, soaring, powerful nose. Rich and roasted. Huge and very ripe but there is backbone too. The mid palate is packed full of black cherry and plum fruit. Decadent but not overblown. A sensational and opulent wine that needs time to settle down but should be ready sooner than some of the great “vin de garde” vintages of the past. 19 points.
2008 – 62% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Franc. The colour reveals only a slight fade. A little shy on the nose, much less sexy than the 2009, much more reserved. On the palate this is quite tight at the moment and although there is a core of dense fruit, it is quite closed with a firm edge to it. A serious Angélus that needs a few years to come out of its shell. 16.5.
2007 – 65% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc. An attractive nose that is already open and appealing. The palate is soft, plump and charming. This is a forward, easy-drinking wine full of soft, ripe fruit. Quite oaky, not enormous depth but pure pleasure here. Just about ready to drink and will give uncomplicated drinking pleasure over the next 10 years. 16
2006 – 58% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Franc. Not very revealing on the nose. Firm on the palate. A solid structure here with the tannins currently keeping the fruit under wraps. Quite a long-term wine I suspect. 16.5.
2005 – 55% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Franc. Deep colour. An opulent, exotic and powerful nose. Huge depth of plummy fruit on the palate with layer upon layer of rich black cherries and damsons. Rich, powerful and really classic Angélus. Nearly as dense as the 2009 but with a little more structure. Needs at least another 5 years before it’s ready. Will be great. 18.5
2004 – 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc. A liitle fade at the rim. This shows some maturity and tastes a lot more than 1 year older than the 2005. Fresh, bright band peppery. Nicely balanced, proper claret and not as decadent as most vintages of Angélus. Ready to drink if you don’t mind a tannic edge but will be better, and rounder, in another 2-3 years. 16+.
2003 – 43% Merlot, 57% Cabernet Franc (the highest % ever). Hubert was very lucky to have such a large proportion of Cabernet Franc in the vineyard so that he could change the recipe in 2003. Many of the neighbours clearly suffered with sun-burnt, over-ripe Merlot but the Cabernet Franc here gives the wine balance. Nevertheless, the colour (as is typical of the vintage) is browning and showing maturity. Creamy, sexy and ripe with milk chocolate and raisin notes. Hot and rich but it’s all up front with little length. Certainly one of the best right bank 2003’s but there is no point in keeping it. Drink it now with a big lump of meat. 16
2002 – 45% Merlot, 55% Cabernet Franc. Another Cabernet vintage. A strong deep colour that looks far younger than the 2003. Like the 2004, this has a touch of pepper and plenty of tannin to match the fruit. Not quite ready to drink and it seems a little lean (inevitably) after the 2003. .This will be a well-balanced, mid-weight wine to consume at aged 10 onwards. Serious for the vintage. 16+
2001 – 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc. The colour is more evolved than the 2002. An opulent and sexy nose. This is a wine that is just entering its prime. Fully evolved tannins, the fruit is ripe – almost a touch of the ’03 about it. Easy-drinking, no need to wait for this one. A lovely 2001 that will give great drinking pleasure over the next decade and beyond. 16.5
2000 – 50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Franc. The oldest wine in a 5 wine flight but it looks the youngest! This is sensationally stacked with dense black plum fruit. Huge, ripe, decadent but still quite firm and even at eleven years of age it’s not ready to drink. Great depth and length but an adolescent still. Everything is there in spades, just give it a couple more years. 18.5+
The Serious Business Gets Underway
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1999 – 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. The harvest was less than 50% than normal because of hail. Unusually for Angelus there are some slightly vegetal, green notes here. A bit clunky and clumsy. Not the complexity or richness of most vintages and well behind the quality of everything produced in the next decade. Not bad, just not a great Angélus. 15
1998 – 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc. The colour shows a little fade. Now ready to drink, this beautiful Saint Emilion has really evolved into quite a charmer. Really “a point” now, smooth and polished but a bit of grip too. A lovely wine, not a blockbuster but good weight with lots of fruit. Fine. 17.5+
1997 – 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc. A mature colour but there’s more to it than most 1997’s. Obviously not as much to it as the previous vintage but this is by no means an “off-vintage” kind of wine. Ideal to drink now, no sign of the stalkiness found in other wines of the vintage. A success for 1997. 15.5+
1996 – 55% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Franc. Some brown fade at the rim. This is perfect to drink now. Fully developed, like a slightly plumper version of the 1997 or a lighter version of the 1995. Easy-going, smooth and quite seductive. Round and charming. 16.5
1995 – 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc – the classic grape mix in what was clearly a very good vintage at Angelus. Still a deep colour with little fade. Lovely richness lots of fruit. Serious and classy with just a little kick of tannin. Mature but still youthful. Plenty of life ahead here. 17.5
1994 – 70% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc. Faded at the rim, mature nose. Complex on the palate with plenty of fruit still. Earthy and almost a touch of Burgundy to it. Interesting and characterful. Just about at its best right now. 16
1993 – 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc. Fading colour. Just starting to dry out but there is still a decent core of fruit. Maybe a hint of wet leaves, might go well with grouse, something gamey here. Good for this difficult vintage but drink this up quickly as it’s not going to get any better. 15.5
1992 – 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. Now this is a bad vintage but the wine is actually rather good. A faded colour but a sweet nose. Decadent, ripe and sweet. Don’t decant this, just open and pour. Still has some body and flesh. An achievement in 1992. 15.5
1991 – 95% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc. Hubert revealed that only 400 cases were produced in 1991 (compared to the normal 8000). Unfortunately he probably shouldn’t have bothered. This is thin, metallic and weedy. Well done for trying but it’s well past it. 13
1990 – 50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Franc. Still a deep red at the centre. Huge, wafting, powerful nose. Super-sexy, gorgeous and ripe. Full of cream, leather and spice. Pure hedonism. Sweet and long. Gorgeous stuff. 19
1989 – 50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Franc. A slightly more mature colour than the 1990. Perfumed nose. Sweet, smooth and sexy. Lovely to drink now, no hard edges and a silky smooth texture. Long yet refined. Not quite the oomph of the 1990 for me but most people preferred it. Certainly these are twin vintages of great quality here. Most people in the room scored the 1989 ahead of the 1990. 18
The Big Bottles take a Breather
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1988 – 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc. Maturing colour with a wonderfully exuberant nose. Not surprisingly this isn’t as sweet and succulent as the previous two vintages but it’s an excellent 1988. It must be one of the plumpest wines that I’ve ever tasted from this famously lean vintage. Blind you’d get this as an 1989 or 1990 every time. Perfect mature right bank claret. Delicious and at its peak. 17.5
1987 – 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc. A very mature colour, sweet but weak. A little sugary but simple and lacks body. Trying but falls away at the end. Much better than the 1991 anyway. 14.5
1986 – 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc. Mature colour. This is a fading beauty that is now a little past its prime. The fruit has turned rather Burgundian and gamey. Drink this up quickly. 15.5+
1985 – 55% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Franc. Hubert’s first vintage and the last year that 100% of the crop went into the grand vin. This is very mature, smooth, with a hint of decay. Charming but fading. 16
This was a great tasting of a Château that has been on top form over the last quarter of a century. Some of the critics of Angélus may accuse the property of “too much winemaking” but that was really proven not to be the case. Maybe, when tasted en primeur, it does come across as rather “modern” but the wine clearly matures well and develops character as it does so. The differences between each vintage were huge and although not a classically “pretty” Saint Emilion, this is certainly, and consistently, one of the finest and most impressive wines of the appellation.
