2021 Ch Angelus Premier Grand Cru Classé, St-Émilion
A$777.14
Availability:
Out of stock
SKU
ANGELU216
DUE OCT 2024
Medium-deep crimson. Intense inky elderberry graphite, cedar, roasted chestnut aromas with hint violet notes. Lovely pure blackberry, mulberry fruits, graphite, al dente textures, attractive mid-palate generosity and underlying roasted chestnut notes. Finishes chalky firm with persistent dark fruits. A very well structured wine with freshness and vigour. 60% cabernet franc, 40% merlot. A cabernet franc dominant wine for the first time in the history of Angelus, highlighting the challenge of the vintage and the fidelity of the grape variety in 2021. Vinification in oak and stainless steel (merlot) and concrete (cabernet franc). 22 months in new French oak.
96-97 points Andrew Caillard MW
The Grand Vin 2021 Château Angélus is 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot that was brought up in new barrels, with a portion of the Cabernet Franc raised in 30 hectoliter foudres. It offers a ruby/purple hue to go with a gorgeous perfume of pureed cassis and black raspberry fruit, as well as spice, spring flowers, and chalky, almost salty minerality. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has wonderful purity of fruit, ultra-fine tannins, and a gorgeous finish.
94-96 points Jeb Dunnuck jebdunnuck.com
Beautiful depth here, with currants and blackberries, as well as hints of fresh herbs and wet earth. Medium-to full-bodied, layered and long, with depth and beauty. Savory. Impressive for the vintage. Persistent.
95-96 points jamessuckling.com
This is well textured, plush raspberry and damson fruits, a sleight of hand that turns the high acidities into mouth-watering juice, with waves of graphite, pencil lead, saffron, smoked caramel and cigar box. The highest amount of Cabernet Franc on record at Angélus, largely because so much Merlot was lost to mildew. First full vintage where Benjamin Laforet is technical director, working alongside Hubert de Bouard. It's serious, takes its time to open, far less exuberant than the past few vintages at Angélus but classy and with presence. They are labelling this Premier Grand Cru Classé A, despite withdrawing from the 2022 classification when the selection process was already underway, and underlines why it's a loss to the ranking not to have Angélus within in. 23hl/h yield, no chaptilisation on the 1st wine, 100% new oak barrels + 30hl oak casks for the Cabernet Franc.
95 points Jane Anson janeanson.com
Blackcurrant purée on the nose, so seductive and heady, concentrated and intense but lively too with some wild flower scents. Succulent on the first sip, you get the mouthwatering red cherry and raspberry fruit but this then turns serious and direct. Linear, focused, driving with layers of flavour giving this both a density but also an aerial element to it. In some ways, there’s a shyness here, a discretion, such sleek silky tannins that softly frame the flavours which are to the fore right now. Red cherry, plum and damson sit alongside clove, cedar, black chocolate and liquorice coming from the Cabernet Franc giving a spicy tang sustaining the wine - the highest amount of Cabernet Franc ever used in the grand vin at 60%. Each element is so well positioned and in high definition, you feel the muscles and backbone but this has exceptional finesse with all the tiny details on show. An excellent effort in 2021. 100% new oak. The first full vintage with technical director Benjamin Laforet.
Drinking Window 2026 - 2049
95 points Georgie Hindle decanter.com
A brilliant wine that signposts this estate's evolution under Stéphanie de Boüard-Rivoal, the 2021 Angélus is a blend of 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot, with fully half of the old-vine Cabernet Franc maturing in foudres rather than 225-liter barriques. The result is a wine of unprecedented purity and finesse, unwinding in the glass with compelling aromas of plums, raspberries, rose petals, vine smoke, blood orange and warm spices, followed by a medium to full-bodied, deep and layered palate with a rich and fleshy core that entirely conceals its structuring chassis of ultra-refined tannins. Bright and sapid, it's striking for its integration and elegance at this early stage, and I wouldn't be surprised to see it upstage a number of more touted vintages once it's in bottle.
94-96+ points William Kelley robertparker.com
For the first time ever Angelus is 60% Cabernet franc and 40% Merlot in 2021. There is terrific density in power especially within the context of the year. Black cherry chocolate spice menthol and lavendervall build nicely in the glass. The 2021 has quite a bit of richness and it's 14% alcohol a bit lower than recent norm works quite well in this vintage. All it needs is a bit of time to help soften some of the raw contours that are present today.
94-96 points vinous.com
| Product/Service Sold Out | Yes |
|---|---|
| En Primeur | No |
| New Arrivals | No |
| Wine Type | Red Wine |
| Wine Style | Traditional |
| Country | France |
| Region | St. Emilion |
| Varietals | Merlot |
| Vintage | 2021 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Wine Points | 96-97 |
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