L'Esprit de Chevalier rouge - Pessac-Léognan 2020

L'Esprit de Chevalier rouge - Pessac-Léognan 2020

The Domaine de Chevalier located in Léognan, the Capital town of the Graves Region has a long history. It appears on the famous map of Pierre de Belleyme in 1783. In 1983 the estate was purchased by the Bernard Family, N° 1 in France on the spirits market and a major negociant of premium Bordeaux wines. It has been run ever since by Olivier Bernard who perpetuates that spirit of balance and the constant drive for perfection which have been the hallmark of this outstanding wine.

Since 1986, the planting of young vines has meant that the DOMAINE DE CHEVALIER had to craft a second wine, in both white and red.
This blend of sauvignon and semillon is known as L’ESPRIT DE CHEVALIER.
L’ESPRIT… The Spirit is also a way of making a wine. The Bernard Family, by calling its second wine L’ESPRIT DE CHEVALIER, wanted above all for it to carry the hallmark of Chevalier and to reflect the « Spirit » of the estate, combining
powerfulness and complexity but also finesse and elegance in total respect of the “terroir”. The red L’ESPRIT DE CHEVALIER is aged for 14 months in oak barrels, one third of which are renewed each year.
It is an appealing wine, ready to be appreciated earlier than the main wine (3 to 5 years old).

Harvest
Hand-picked, into small crates.
Grapes are carefully sorted in the vineyard as well as before and after destemming.

Vinification
Four vat-rooms, (steel, stainless steel, concrete “tulip” and wooden vats.)

Ageing
14 months in barrels

Tasting
Very intense color, black in the middle.
Deep, ripe nose of red and black berries, spices and fresh peaty humus and heather.
Concentrated on the palate. Black fruits and superb tannins with a tight structure, developing fresh and liquorice flavors of pine forests.
The brightly fruity flesh coats these tannins well. Structured, dense wine, promising to keep well. Very good overall balance, in line with the great wine.