Angélus - Hommage à Elisabeth Bouchet - Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2022
Hommage à Elisabeth Bouchet, a rare single-variety cuvée
It all starts with a ‘coup de foudre’: in 1921, Maurice de Boüard de Laforest married Élisabeth Bouchet. It was Élisabeth who was the driving force behind the purchase of ‘Clos de L’Angelus’. As a homage to his young wife, who had now made Saint-Emilion her home, Maurice de Boüard de Laforest replanted a large plot of the estate with Cabernet Franc, a grape variety known locally as “Bouchet”.
To immortalize the legacy of this extraordinary woman who indelibly shaped the family's history, the team at Angélus have crafted a highly scarce and precious cuvée, 100% Cabernet franc. The Hommage à Elisabeth Bouchet is only produced in vintages in which the optimal expression of Cabernet Franc variety is achieved. Only a few bottles are made.
The 2022 vintage
The winter was mild and dry. A mild spring followed with intermittent rainstorms which delivered just the right amount of water to the vines and soils. Fruit set went quickly and in excellent conditions and promised an abundant crop. When the hot, dry summer weather arrived, substantial adjustments were made to the cover crops in the rows, which enabled to maintaine up the moisture and cool temperatures of the clay soils till the end of August, in spite of the high temperatures. The vines never lacked water throughout the summer, and at the end of August, two night-time storms provided some relief for the vines and replenished the soils. The summer of 2022 bore an incredibly close resemblance to those great summers that followed the Second World War, and which produced the outstanding 1945, 1947 and 1949 vintages. In mid October, the vine, that astonishing Mediterranean plant, still displayed a deep green colour, demonstrating its perfect adaptation within the great vine-growing terroirs.