Farr Vintners Logo

Angélus 2017

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyMerlot/Cabernet Franc

Under the leadership of Hubert de Bouard since the mid 1980's, Angélus has been one of the superstars of Saint Emilion, producing modern-style, deep, concentrated and ripe wines full of richness and fruit. In 2012 Angélus (along with Pavie) joined Ausone and Cheval Blanc in achieving first growth status. A fitting achievement for the hard work and consistent results here recently. The 42 hectare vineyard is planted 50:50 Cabernet Franc and Merlot.

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Angelus

Label

Tasting Notes

Tasted blind. Deep ruby colour. Very fragrant nose, full of cherry blossom, violet and spiced plums. There are bass notes of meaty oak too. The palate is lithe and crunchy, this feels full of Cabernet Franc. Graphite and dried herbs mingle with fresh red fruit. This is edgy and intense with just the right measure of weight and ripeness needed. Finely etched with some creaminess on the back end and highly refined tannins.
Drink 2025 – 2039

17.5
Thomas Parker MW, JancisRobinson.com, October 2021

This is so pure and aromatic with a level of complexity and refinement for the vintage that few have. Sweet tobacco, flowers, herbs and stone with underlying richness of fruit. It opens on the palate to a full body that is tight and reserved with an extremely focused tannin mouth feel. Length and excitement at the end. Very polished Angélus. A blend of 70% merlot and 30% cabernet franc. Drink in 2024 and onwards.

97
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, January 2020

Angelus 2017 is a blend of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc and has a deep garnet-purple color. It prances out of the glass with gorgeous redcurrant jelly, black cherry preserves, and scents of wild blueberries, plus wafts of lilacs, forest floor, and crushed rocks, with a touch of camphor. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has great tension and bags of youthful red and black berry flavors, supported by fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing on a lingering ferrous note.

96+
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, December 2022

Emmanuelle has been making wine here for 22 years now. The freshness of the Merlot in 2017 reminds her of 2001 - I would certainly agree, and maybe with a hint of 2014 too. It's a beautiful wine, voluptuous but elegant. These vines were not frosted, but the Cabernet Franc produced less than usual, and they also made an extremely careful selection overall, leading to a yield of 30hl/ha. The wine has great complexity, which is a standout character in 2017, with bilberries, charcoal and plush damson - the Angelus signature of power and glamour. There is good tannic density here and it will clearly merit long ageing. 85,000 bottles of Angelus produced representing around 80% of total production. Matured in 100% new oak.
Drinking Window 2027 - 2040

96
Jane Anson, Decanter.com, April 2018

Inky crimson. Redolent of classy and spicy oak but the fruit fragrance is there too, waiting to emerge after the chocolate dies back. A fine note of graphite and Cabernet Franc leafy (but fully ripe) freshness. Spicy and fresh on the palate. Rich and finely textured, with the oak giving way to the fruit on the palate. Very good balance even at this early stage. Savoury dark-chocolate, clean finish.
Drink 2027-2040

17.5+
Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2018

Brooding depth the fruit on the nose is rich and ripe the start of the palate sweet with fleshy black fruits. There is an underpinning freshness balance the bilberry bramble mix gives brightness at the back but it fills out on the finish sweet and ripe. 2027-40

92/95
Derek Smedley MW, DerekSmedleyMW.co.uk, April 2018

A very plush nose explodes from the glass with oak and fruit both working in tandem. This is another welcome example of a wine with superb flavour and colour, but without excess muscle and testosterone. Angélus has embraced the vintage rather than trying to imprint its own character on the wine. There is a dark and daring espresso and chocolate edge to this wine which adds to the appeal and it also manages to work extremely well with the oak, too. A relatively forward-drinking vintage, which will also keep well, this is a huge success for this property and with the stunning, but strikingly different, second wine as part of the offering the 2017 vintage is complete for this estate.

18.5+
Matthew Jukes, Matthew Jukes' Blog, April 2018
Read more tasting notes...

A layered and fine-grained young Angelus with very focused and integrated tannins that give the young wine form and focus. Full body and a subtle and fascinating fruit character. Should turn out beautifully.

95/96
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2018

Composed of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc, the medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2017 Angélus wafts slowly, sensuously out of the glass with notes of warm red currants, Black Forest cake, blackberry compote and pencil shavings with nuances of rose oil, black tea, cloves and cumin seed. The medium-bodied palate is wonderfully elegant and refreshing, sporting very finely grained tannins and layers of red and black fruit preserves, finishing long with mineral fireworks. What a beauty!

95
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (Oct 20), October 2020

A blend of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc, the deep purple-black colored 2017 Angélus is a little closed to begin, opening out beautifully to notes of baked plums, fresh blackberries and chocolate-covered cherries with hints of mocha, bay leaves, beef drippings and wood smoke plus a touch of roses. Medium to full-bodied with a great density of mid-palate fruit and firm, fine-grained tannins, it finishes long and earthy with a compelling lift.

94/96
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (236), April 2018
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.