2011 Beychevelle (St-Julien)

Beychevelle appears to have handled the 2011 vintage in an intelligent manner, producing a soft, round, attractive, medium-bodied wine that, while not terribly deep or powerful, is well-balanced with excellent equilibrium and lots of dusty, loamy soil notes interwoven with black cherry and plummy fruit. This pretty St.-Julien can be drunk over the next decade. 87 points

Deep purplish crimson with garnet hue. Vanilla and fruit on the nose, with just a hint of black pepper. Pretty, plump and ethereal entry followed by an elegant and delicately pulpy palate bursting with fruit and fulfilling its promises on finish where it appears laced with refine tannins and rich taste. Seductive and appealing, particularly if you are fond of perfumed wines with sophisticated tannins. Softness of merlot coming through from start to finish. A blend of 47% cabernet sauvignon, 47% merlot, 4% cabernet franc and 2% petit verdot. 88 points

The yield is one of Beychevelle’s lowest at 39.5hl/ha with 13.2% alcohol and an IPT of 78. It has decent concentration on the nose, red rather than black fruit. raspberry, cranberry and a touch of pomegranate struck through with graphite and tobacco. It is medium-bodied with chalky tannins on the entry that is showing a little grittiness and chalkiness to its texture. It has crisp acidity and firm backbone with a grainy, masculine, tobacco tinged, tapered finish that is a little raw at present. 89-91 points

Deeply coloured, highly perfumed and sweetly oaked, this is one of the best young Beychevelles I’ve tasted. It’s a gentle, fragrant wine with supple tannins and sweet liquorice and blackcurrant flavours. Crucially, the wine has no hard edges or over-extracted tannins. The Chinese may buy up most of it and who can blame them? 10+ years. 94 points