Chateau l'Evangile 2019

Rich, with an exotic tilt to the loganberry, mulberry and fig preserve flavors. Really packed, delivering anise, black tea, singed mesquite, sweet tobacco and ganache accents that all play a part, while a racy cast-iron spine holds it all together. Shows more power than seduction in terms of style, but this is clearly in the elite class of Pomerols this vintage. Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2025 through 2038.

A well-articulated wine with elegance and a serious expression of place. The 16% Cabernet Franc (alongside 1% Cabernet Sauvignon, the first year in the blend) gives such an enticing, highly perfumed nose—you really get a nose full of flowers here, which I love. There’s depth on the palate straight away—it’s concentrated but unfolds in layers rather than through overt volume or voluptuousness. Tannins are sleek and well integrated, with spice-edged blackcurrant, red and black cherries, plums, liquorice, cedar and cinnamon nuances. The acidity brings a fresh, cooling succulence, and there’s clear opulence throughout, yet it’s still quite shy, just showing signs of life. A sophisticated wine with a long future.

Fruit-tea, blackberry, tile and ripe-fruit aromas follow through to a full body with density and richness. Chocolate and walnut. Dense and seamless with super fruit and length. Lots of fruit. Very polished. Stylized. All the cabernet franc on the estate is in the wine. From organic grapes. Give it at least five to seven years to open. Try after 2026.

The 2019 L'Évangile is a highly problematic wine. Whether that is a result of excessive heat stress in the vineyard or decisions made in the field and the cellar is hard to say. I thought élevage would bring the wine together. Instead, time has only accentuated the impressions present in the en primeur sample. I don't think it is a surprise that a whole new team led by Juliette Couderc and Olivier Trégoat is now in charge. Couderc and Trégoat have worked together previously at the Rothschild family's Long Dai winery in China and seem quite determined to turn things around here. Let me be clear: that does not mean the former team is necessarily totally responsible for 2019, as some of the decisions may have come from higher up. There is no way for an outsider to know, and in the end it doesn't really matter. What is obvious is that the 2019 L'Évangile is alcoholic, aggressive in its contours and disjointed in feel. It goes without saying that quality is far from where it should be. Even so, Saskia de Rothschild is passionate about her family's Pomerol estate and does not shy away from critiquing her own wines, so I am confident 2019 will one day be regarded as a bump in the road.

Deep, dark, rich, and opulent, this flamboyant wine serves up an elixir packed with dark chocolate-covered cherries, plums, espresso, truffle, licorice, smoke, and wet earth. Full-bodied, concentrated, dense, and intense, this is hedonism, but the high ABV does impart some heat that takes away from the overall experience. The wine blends 83% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon. This is the first time Cabernet Sauvignon has been placed in the blend. Drink from 2025–2040.

Pencil lead and graphite reduction on the first nose, with turmeric and white pepper spice. This is delicious, less effortlessly exuberant than it was En Primeur, when the backbone was hidden by baby fat, and the oak is dominant right now. Inky in colour, as it opens you get gorgeous strokes of cocoa bean, damson and espresso; this is powerful and concentrated, but I get a flash of heat that hardens the tannins on the finish. Last year under Jean-Pascal Vazart, and the first to have Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1st wine (in 2018 it was in Blason, and made a particularly structured 2nd wine). 70% new oak (lowering from 2020 with the addition of amphoras and larger-sized oak casks).

The 2019 L'Evangile is composed of 83.5% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc, and 0.5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep garnet-purple in color, it has classic notes of plum preserves, crushed rocks, and tar with nuances of cedar chest, licorice, and espresso. The full-bodied palate is chock full of youthful, energetic black fruits, supported by ripe, rounded tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and earthy.

16% Cabernet Franc, 0.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 83.5% Merlot make up the final blend. For the cru, it’s further proof of how the Cabernets contribute to the wine’s final fullness and style. The cashmere-like tannin looks impressive.

At 15.5% alcohol, this wine is rich and self-assured, certainly, with all the flamboyance one expects from l'Evangile, yet endowed with the lovely freshness owed to its 16% Cabernet Franc. The palate, with ripe, inky-black fruit, is indulgent and chocolaty, fresh and creamy, before revealing a sappy edge.

The nose is fruity and offers slight concentration, fine richness (creamy), elegance, dynamism, and a certain richness. It reveals notes of pulpy blackberry, crisp strawberry and, more subtly, pulpy/fresh blackcurrant, combined with touches of tonka bean and star anise, discreet sappy hints, as well as fine hints of creamy raspberry, orange zest (in the background), and coffee. The palate is fruity, finely tight, and offers juiciness, creaminess, density, tension, and a good guideline. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of pulpy/creamy raspberry, juicy/fresh strawberry and, more slightly, crushed blackcurrant, combined with touches of cornflower and star anise, as well as fine hints of tonka bean, a subtle sappy/eucalyptus note, a discreet hint of toast, and mocha. The tannins are supple and elegant. A certain power on the finish/persistence. Good length.

Dark, intense, and beautiful color. Very aromatic, refined nose with pure fruit. Smoky, toasty touch. Supple on the attack, very aromatic mid-palate, with a silky, flavorful body; the wine evolves gently and finishes with a hint of oak and a nuance of pine, yet without any tannic edges.