[ Home > Wines > Bordeaux > St. Emilion > Chateau Cheval Blanc 2000 - Bordeaux Futures ]
St Emilion, Bordeaux Readers can put money on this one ... it's a no-brainer, Cheval Blanc 2000 is the wine of the vintage! Approximately 50% of the harvest made the grade for manager Pierre Lurton. This wine offers an explosion of berry fruits, a texture akin to cashmere, and layers of melted tannin infused with awesome levels of extract and fruit. Seamless and extraordinarily pure, the 2000 Cheval Blanc has everything one would ever want in a wine. It is not enormous, but it has a level of intensity and concentration without any sense of heaviness that sets it apart from most wines. Moreover, the tannins are melted and totally unobtrusive in a wine that, analytically, is high in tannin. The glorious nose of blueberries, blackberries, coconut, new saddle leather, and flowers is to die for. The texture is so plush that the palate gets lost in a dizzying smorgasbord of flavors and aromas. This is the greatest young Cheval Blanc I have ever tasted. If there is one wine worth killing for in 2000, it is Cheval Blanc. As a postscript, this wine is a blend of 50% Cabernet Franc and 50% Merlot Rated 99-100 Robert Parker Superripe, with berry, licorice and cherry. Full-bodied, with big, velvety tannins and a very long finish. Unbelievable. More exuberant and thick than 1998. Score range: 95-100 Wine Spectator The existing Cheval-Blanc estate was largely planted with vines in the 18th century, as shown by one of Belleyme's maps dated 1764. When Monsieur Ducasse purchased the original estate in 1832, the state of the vines had been quite adversely affected by the poor financial position of the former owner, Félicité de Carles-Trajet. In his book on Saint-Emilion, Bernard Ginestet tells us that "the new owner took over vineyards that were in an awful way, with a run-down house and barn. The vine rows were planted far apart so as to grow other crops in between". The estate began to be renovated at a slow pace, over several decades. During this time, neighbouring plots of vines were purchased and added to existing vineyards. The definitive shape of Cheval-Blanc as we know it today dates from 1871. Indications suggest that it was Monsieur Ducasse who initiated major drainage work in the vines to improve the poor condition of certain parcels. His son-in-law, Jean Laussac-Fourcaud (later to change his name to Fourcaud-Laussac), became manager of the estate after his marriage to Henriette Ducasse in 1852, and was responsible for having most of the work done. Cabernet Franc grapes were first planted at Cheval-Blanc at the beginning of the Third Republic, which started in 1870. It is not known whether this was done empirically or because there was an intuition that this was an excellent variety to grow on the estate's outstanding soil. By this time, the wine of Cheval-Blanc had already become quite famous, winning top medals and awards at international competitions (London in 1862, Paris in 1878, Antwerp in 1885, etc.). Albert Fourcaud-Laussac became sole owner of Château Cheval-Blanc in 1893, after the death of his mother, Henriette. The following century would see the wine's reputation go from strength to strength, and Monsieur Ducasse's heirs took it very much to heart to continue the efforts begun in 1832. After Albert died, his five children established the Société Civile du Cheval-Blanc in 1927. This includes thirty shareholders today, all of whom are members of the Fourcaud-Laussac family |
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