Chateau Talbot 2021

Slightly animal on the nose, dark and red berries, spices, tobacco. Creamy palate, tannins not overbearing, red-fruited finish. Well balanced, it will be enjoyable relatively early.

Offers a solid core of crushed plum and black currant fruit, underscored by savory and tobacco accents and a light sanguine edge. Possesses just enough flesh to stave off the vintage's grainy side as a late iron note echoes. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2025 through 2035. 22,000 cases made, 1,900 cases imported.

Cranberry, red berry fruit and green peppercorns – something a little spicy on the nose. Charming and effortless. Clean and crunchy on the palate, crisp and high-toned with some green apple, just-ripe raspberry and strawberry fruit, with juicy, bright but balanced acidity and a gently creamy, chalky texture all the way through. Nice personality, pretty but nuanced and well built. Not a showstopper, certainly on the lighter, more delicate side, but they’ve done a good job here. Tangy, but cheerful and characterful. A nice effort.

The 2021 Talbot, bottled in early May, has an unapologetically classical-styled nose: light black fruit, antique furniture, freshly rolled tobacco with some pencil shavings. It gains a little more fruitiness with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins. Nicely balanced, this is underpinned by a keen thread of acidity, a bit austere toward the finish like many in this vintage. I wonder whether it will gain a bit more flesh during bottle aging?

Forward, fresh, crisp, and packed with juicy, bright red fruits, mint, herbs, cedar and tobacco leaves, the wine is medium-bodied, savory, soft, leafy and vibrant, with a nice pop to the red berries in the mid-palate that stick around through to the end of the finish. The wine is produced blends 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. Drink from 2024-2042.

Dark ruby garnet colour with purple reflections, subtle ochre brightening on the rim. Ripe plums, fresh wild berries, dark cherries, a hint of orange zest. Medium body, a touch of red berries, elegant and fresh acidity, fine tannins, mineral and persistent, salty finish, approachable.

The 2021 Château Talbot is based on 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, and 5% Petit Verdot. It has lots to love and brings more density and depth than most in the vintage. Ripe red and black fruits, tobacco leaf, spicy oak, and a touch of chocolaty earth all emerge on the nose, and it's medium-bodied, with a rock-solid mid-palate, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It's impressive and well worth seeking out and buying, as you can drink bottle today or in 15+ years with no issues.

Dark, liqueur-like nose, youthful and classic, with plenty of power and good depth. On the palate it shows a silky sweetness, very appealing and clear, firm and nuanced. A good, solid Talbot with plenty of flesh and power, as well as a balsamic sweetness on the finish. With its fresh Cabernet core, it somehow recalls the dense 1995 Grands Crus.

Kunz barrel sample 2022: (71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot, 44 hl/ha, 12.8% vol. alcohol, production 280,000 bottles) Spicy, powerful, dark bouquet with cassis, tobacco, coffee beans, smoke. Powerful, aromatic palate with good tannins, a robust structure, dark fruit, intense aromatics, and a long, aromatic finish. Has room to improve.

(71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot, 44 hl/ha, 12.8% vol. alcohol, production 280,000 bottles) Spicy, powerful, dark bouquet, cassis, tobacco, coffee beans, smoke. Powerful, aromatic palate with good tannin, robust structure, dark fruit, intense aromatics, long, aromatic finish. Can improve further. 17/20 2028 - 2050

Settled in over ageing. Red fruits, raspberry and blackberry, crunchy and with some charm. 44 hl/ha yield, and a natural 12% alcohol, reflecting a vineyard that is naturally low in alcohol. Tasted twice in the same week, and enjoyable again, with classic sculpted balance and charm. As I said at the estate, St Julien can almost get away with this because there is an expectation of finesse. Tasted twice.

The 2021 Talbot has a deep garnet-purple color. It features notes of fresh redcurrants and blackberries, followed by hints of dried Provence herbs and black pepper. The medium-bodied palate is lively and straightforward, with a light chewiness to the tannins and a savory lift on the finish.

This is a wine with obvious charm, offering fresh fruit expression and oak that still wraps it a little. The whole is well-built, with length, but a finish that remains somewhat tight. Cellar it and open in five years.

Discreet on the nose, it exerts a certain fascination despite its shyness. Vibrant and fluid on the palate, seductive, it leads us to a refined, easy-drinking finish. A Talbot with real class.

Dark, purple color. An exceptionally aromatic, perfumed nose. Very pure fruit. Soft on entry and well-built for the vintage, very fruity; the wine develops with good density and no tannic edges, with a normal length.

It is indeed Cabernet Sauvignon and the terroir that champion and carry Talbot 2021. The bouquet reveals notes of graphite, cedar, and blackcurrant. Fairly streamlined on the attack, the wine shows a slightly softer side while retaining tannins and a structure that ensure power and character. Mid-palate, the wine consolidates its freshness-driven profile as well as its potential. A Talbot 2021 to follow over time. It will be approachable in its youth, but it will be very interesting to taste over the coming decades!