Producer
Château Capbern
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Merlot makes up nearly half the blend this year, up from its usual 25% supporting role. Scents of plum are predominant, with some wood-spice, blossom, and red berry hints. The glossy start and just-ripe juicy plum belie the greenery beneath. The acidity refreshes the palate, and it ends with almost a green peppercorn note.
Merlot makes up nearly half the blend this year, up from its usual 25% supporting role. Scents of plum are predominant, with some wood-spice, blossom, and red berry hints. The glossy start and just-ripe juicy plum belie the greenery beneath. The acidity refreshes the palate, and it ends with almost a green peppercorn note.
The 2022 Capbern was cropped at 26hL/ha between 6 and 27 September, a 20-day cuvaison and matured in 60% new oak for a planned 18 months. The Cabernet Sauvignon berries were tiny this year, which underlies why the Merlot comprises a higher percentage of the blend. It has an airy, floral bouquet with blackberries, wild strawberries and a touch of raspberry confit. There's an almost Pinot-like purity. The palate is medium-bodied with a grippy, peppery entry, full-bodied and muscular at the moment. I'm seeking a bit more grace here - perhaps this Saint-Estèphe is slightly over-revving on the finish? Drink 2027-2047
The 2022 Capbern is a powerful, dense wine. Black cherry, chocolate, new leather, dried herbs, licorice and gravel infuse the 2022 with notable depth and presence. This is quite an attractive Capbern. Drink it over the next handful of years.
The 2022 Capbern is a wild, exotic wine. Super-ripe, red-toned fruit, chalk, mint, white pepper and sweet spice are front and center. The tannins are a bit untamed at this stage; hopefully élevage will take care of that. Tasted two times. Drink 2026-2037.
Notes of dark berries and cherries mingled with licorice and loamy soil introduce the 2022 Capbern, a medium to full-bodied, rich and fleshy wine framed by ripe, powdery tannins and concluding with a long, somewhat heady finish. It's a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot and the balance Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, picked between the 6th and 27th of September.
A firm and tight red with blackberry and currant character. Medium body. Bright and savory.
This is a brilliant Capbern, and it continues a run of superb vintages for this wine under Vincent Millet’s steady hand. Despite the mighty 15% alcohol, this perfectly balanced wine packs so much flavour into this bottle. Expressive, juicy and singing with Merlot notes overlaying a deep Cabernet core, this is an exotic wine, and it could not be more different to the classy 2021 vintage, given its sheer exuberance! Amazingly silky and mouth-filling, behind the fantastic volume of fruit, there is invigorating freshness and crunch on the finish. Thumpingly juicy, beautifully satisfying and impeccably balanced, this is a triumphant vintage for Capbern.
One of the more opulent, sexy wines in the vintage, the 2022 Château Capbern just about jumps out of the glass with its sweet red, blue, and black fruits as well as notions of chocolate, graphite, and leafy herbs. Full-bodied, concentrated, and textured on the palate, with ripe tannins, this stunning Saint-Estèphe is up there with the finest vintages I've tasted from this château.
St Estèphe is the most northern of Médoc communal crus. Its unique terroir is made up of layers of gravel which are supported by a dense clay base. This subsoil retains water in dry seasons and works particularly well with Merlot, a largely planted variety which is used to flesh out Cabernet Sauvignon. This clay base also creates powerful, textured tannins which enable St Estèphe to stand out from the pack. Like St Julien, it is one of the four most important communal appellations of the Médoc which does not contain any first growths, despite its southern border being a stone'sthrow from Château Lafite. Nonetheless, it is home to some excellent châteaux making fine wines such as Cos d'Estournel, Montrose, Calon Ségur and Lafon Rochet.