Tour Saint Christophe 2018 75cl

Currant, red-tea, chili, chocolate and lemon-zest aromas. Chalk and crushed gravel, too. It’s medium-bodied with tight, fine-grained tannins and fresh acidity. Sleek and tight with crunchy berry, mineral and zesty notes on the finish. Complex. Pretty center palate to this. Extremely polished. Try from 2025.

A blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, aged for around 18 months in oak barrels, 40% new, the 2018 Tour Saint Christophe weighs in at 14.6% alcohol. Deep garnet-purple in color, it comes barreling out of the glass with bold notions of baked black cherries, plum preserves and blueberry pie plus underlying suggestions of Christmas cake, Chinese five spice and dusty soil. The full-bodied palate packs in the black and blue fruit preserves layers, framed by velvety tannins and lively acidity, finishing long and spicy. In 2012, Hong Kong-based Peter Kwok purchased this vineyard located in Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes, with fruit coming from the Cassevert lieu-dit, which has an average vine age of around 30 years old.