| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
This is a great property that made fabulous wines in the past, but dipped in form during the 1990's until the property was sold in 1996. Huge improvements and investments were then made - in vineyard and chai - by former manager John Kolasa and new owners Chanel. The Chateau itself has recently enjoyed a substantial make-over. It is now right back up there as one of the very best of all the Saint Emilion Chateaux. New director Nicolas Audebert came in from Krug via South America and had an amazing start to his career at Canon, conjuring up the near-perfect 2015 vintage and an outstanding 2016. One of the hottest properties in Bordeaux right now thanks to fantastic quality and reasonable en primeur pricing. The vineyard is planted 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc. The 2018 vintage will spend 18 months in 52% new oak and is made from 72% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Franc.
The 2018 Canon is every bit as magnificent from bottle as it was from barrel. Maybe more so. Vertical and explosive in the glass, Canon sizzles with tension and vibrancy. Readers will find a majestic, soaring Grand Cru Classé that captures all the magic of Saint-Émilion's limestone plateau. Canon exudes mind-blowing precision and deliciousness. It is another magnificent effort from Technical Director Nicolas Audebert and his team. 2028 - 2068.
The 2018 Canon was picked starting on September 7 and finishing on October 9. Given a two-hour decant, it reveals a surprisingly precocious bouquet, more exuberant than I recall from barrel, offering predominantly black fruit, though the floral element is now amplified and masks the crushed limestone I observed previously (for how long?) The palate delivers multilayered black cherry and blueberry fruit, wrapped up in supple tannins and such a cashmere texture that it feels deceptively approachable when in truth, it has the substance and persistence to merit long-term aging. I wagered that it is the best Canon since the watershed 2015. Don’t expect me to alter that view. 2024 - 2055.
Blackberries and tar with wet-earth and dark-bark aromas. Dark-chocolate and brownie notes, too. It’s full-bodied with creamy tannins and a round, caressing finish. Lovely focus and intensity, though dense and layered. Extremely creamy and polished. Really precise and bespoke. It already opens beautifully on the palate. Drink after 2025.
A blend of 72% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc, the 2018 Canon has a pH of 3.69 and 14% alcohol. Deep garnet-purple in color, it tumbles effortlessly out of the glass with a gorgeous perfume of candied violets, preserved plums, black cherry compote and Ceylon tea with hints of kirsch, powdered cinnamon, chocolate box and fertile loam. The medium to full-bodied palate is packed with juicy black fruit layers, supported by plush, oh-so-soft tannins and well-knit freshness, finishing long and fragrant. 2025 - 2052.
The Grand Vin is the 2018 Château Canon, which is based on 72% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc brought up in 52% new French oak. Its incredible bouquet delivers richness paired with amazing freshness and precision, offering loads of crème de cassis and darker berry fruits intermixed with classic Saint-Emilion chalky minerality, graphite, scorched earth, and spring flowers. Gorgeous on the palate as well, with medium to full-bodied richness, ultra-fine tannins, flawless balance, and again, this wonderful sense of freshness paired with ample richness, it needs 4-5 years of bottle age and will evolve for 30+ years. The 2009 and 2015 are still my favorite vintages of this wine, but this is up there with the best of them.
Tasted blind at Southwold 2018. Deep ruby colour. Very seductive, with pure cassis and fresh cherry fruit layered by hints of both vanilla and cedar. The palate has great precision. Fine, ripe, chalky tannins line the mouth with a cocoa-powder texture that sets against bright, ripe fruit. There is a spherical nature to this wine, though structured it seems smooth, with a high level of polish against vibrant fruit. Long and harmonious on the finish, this is as delicious as it is profound.
Pretty closed up right now, this is full of latent energy. It's extremely powerful and precise, with poise and tension but also with generosity and density, yet it errs on the side of not giving much away rather than giving too much. You have to give it time in the glass for those cool blueberry, bilberry and tightly spiced notes to come to the fore. The stunning texture is clear but the aromatics take their time. This is a wine that carries its finesse with great skill, and they have done a brilliant job of allowing this aspect to shine amongst the heat of the vintage, allowing the density to inch deeper with every minute in the glass. This wine just gets better and better, Harvest ran from 7 September to 9 October, the longest ever here, with no pressure of rot. 42hl/ha yield. Thomas Duclos consults.
Drinking Window 2027 - 2043
Tasted blind. Quite pale; quite a simple colour. Tea-leaf aroma. Not that concentrated but nicely balanced. Very fresh – as though it’s trying to play that card! Canon? Lots on the finish. 14.5%
Drink 2027 – 2045
Deep purple with bright rim. Lovely Cabernet Franc fragrance of stony/mineral pure black fruit, both restrained in character and yet aromatic. Juicy and fresh on the palate, full of energy and great finesse in the tannins. Dark, refined beauty with a tiny hint of dark chocolate on the finish. Great persistence and cool subtlety. So fresh and juicy, pure and precise. Lightly chalky tannins on the finish, no sign of the alcohol and the tannins have an underlying power. 'Les tannins reactifs', as technical director Nicolas Audebert calls them (I didn't know what he meant either), give a mouth-watering finish. Silky freshness and elegance.
Drink 2025-2038
Tasted as part of a Canon vertical. Deep purple colour in the glass. Very plump and juicy on the nose, with seductive kirsch, damson, milk chocolate and baked vanilla. The palate is sweet and beautifully rounded, with full bodied, fleshy red and black fruits. The spices from the oak blend sweet vanilla with savoury cedar, and their remains an undertone of graphite against the sweet chocolate and oily espresso notes. Creamy, rich and rounded with a full, long, ripe finish.
Features a gorgeous core of plum and black currant fruit, deeply inlaid with tobacco notes and chalky minerality. Everything melds wonderfully through the finish, which is refined in feel.
A very detailed Canon with super-ripe fruit but also flashes of greenness and beautiful complexity, too. The oak is under control and the length is minutes long. Concentrated and also quite closed right now, this will open beautifully over 20-30 years and I expect it to gather pace as it goes.
The 2018 Canon was picked from 7 September and finished 9 October. It has an immediate bouquet with intense black fruit, crushed limestone, pressed iris flower and a soupçon of crème de cassis. It retains the freshness and delineation one seeks from this Saint-Émilion. The palate is beautifully textured on the entry: velvety tannin, fine acidity, a wine that evokes that oft used "iron fist in a velvet glove" phrase. It fans out wonderfully on the finish. This is a deeply impressive Canon that might be the best since the 2015. Brilliant. 2024 - 2055
This is a dense and focused Canon with beautiful blackberry, almond and hazelnut character. Vivid and lifted. It’s compact and complete with tannins that melt into the center palate and then build at the end. Full-bodied yet reserved and driven. A superb and focused wine. Classy all the way. New 1955?
The 2018 Canon is blended of 72% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc, with a pH of 3.69 and 14% alcohol. Deep purple-black in color, it comes sashaying out of the glass with glamorous notes of cinnamon stick, baked blackberries, black cherry compote and licorice plus an undercurrent of plum preserves and smoked meats and, with coaxing, reveals a lovely floral signature of candied violets and red roses. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is wonderfully soft-spoken, whispering of fragrant floral and earthy scents beneath a core of profound, mouth-coating black and blue fruits, draped in a high level of super ripe, plush tannins, finishing with amazing freshness and perfume with loads of mineral sparks emerging.
Deep ruby in the glass with an opulent, perfumed nose of moccha, sweet red cherries and bramble. The palate is thick and glossy, with rounded fruits cut by fresh and vibrant acidity. The supremely refined, polished tannins bring a velveteen texture, allowing the glossy fruit and notes of milk chocolate to flesh out the palate. The finish is creamy and supple, but lifted and floral in equal measure thanks to the lift of acidity. A wine of pure cashmere and sweetness, this will drink well early and then continue to improve for decades.
Reminding me of a slightly fresher, more focused version of the 2009, the 2018 Château Canon boasts a deep ruby/purple color as well as awesome minerality in its smoked red and black fruits, graphite, cocoa, scorched earth, and spice box driven aromas and flavors. Deep, full-bodied, beautifully concentrated, and structured, this is a powerful Canon that’s going to benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age and keep for decades. The 2018 is a blend of 72% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc that hit 14% natural alcohol (the pH is 3.66) and is still aging in 52% new French oak. Tasted twice.
