1995 - Cheval Blanc, Saint-Emilion

Part of a crazy lineup of wines at a private supper this year, and this was the glass that disappeared on me almost before I noticed I was drinking it. Layer upon layer of black truffle, white truffle, redcurrant and raspberry fruit, with edges of lemongrass and pomegranate punctuating the rich texture with points of freshness. There are tannins here, offering the most gentle of guidance at this point, and yet you just know this wine has decades still ahead of it. A hot and dry year tha produced a healthy yield of just under 45hl/h. 84% of the production in this wine, harvest 15 to 28 September (matching on 1989 and 1990 in terms of early harvests over the previous 50 years). Underestimated by most critics at the time of release, this is still going strong.

(a 53/47 blend of cabernet franc and merlot; 13% alcohol; yield of 45 h/h): Bright red. Pure aromas of strawberry, flowers, soy sauce, espresso and minerals. Then clean and straightforward on the palate, with nicely balanced flavors similar to the aromas. Finishes very long and smooth. A very good Cheval Blanc, bigger than the 1996 but perhaps a touch less delineated; choosing between the two amounts to a case of different strokes for different folks. This was a warm year: temperatures during the 1995 growing season were on average 1.5°C higher than the previously recorded annual averages, with a very hot July and August, and the harvest took place early, between September 15 and 28. In fact, only the 1989 and 1990 harvests began earlier.