Thierry Garnaud, winemaker at Cheval Blanc for 38 vintages, wanted to try his hand at something different. A pure expression of a unique terroir, but more modern, without oak, and available as an everyday drinker, without breaking the bank. 

A fascinating, cooler vintage. After '18, '19 & '20, we thought that 21 would be a similar story, that global warming had meant that fully ripe ‘millesimes d’exception’ were in fact the new normal. Which was of course, totally wrong. Extremely difficult growing conditions then, this for our first full year in charge. First the spring frost, whereby we lost around 20%, which weakened the vines. Then, the wettest June in a long time meant we had a single day to treat the vines and one tractor to get it done.. and thus in came the mildew. So tragic to witness 50% of our grapes just wither away. It was worse elsewhere, some people not even managing a harvest. July & August weren’t particularly hot, September quite warm, and we achieved good maturity on remaining fruit. We picked late. The wines are so interesting. We kept things simple, I heard a lot of people had very long macerations and extractions, but I was delighted to be able to make something softer, finer, lower in alchol & less concentrated. 

We didn’t renew the wood this year, opting to keep on with the one year old barrels, but 100% of the Canon Chaigneau will be aged in those, and we’ll again make our Cuve 8a (though it may end up as 15b because of the quantity!). This again, is not a second wine, as we sell our lesser lots elsewhere, and we have a pretty homogenous terroir. It’s a version vinified and aged in cement, something that the non Bordeaux market appreciates, and in this vintage it’s a particularly interesting. The wines have quite a Burgundian feel to them, soft, approachable, but with a nice bead of acidity and a good concentration of fruit.. and a real ferrous complexity coming through from our terroir, on the finish. We used around 5% press in both cuvées, which was delicious this year, we pressed it extremely gently. If anything, our terroir comes through more than in 19 & 20, where the concentration and maturity are what strikes first. 

Drink now and for 15 years.

‘8a’ is the identity in our chai of the cuve in which this wine is lovingly crafted. Made from specific parcels of slightly younger vines, it’s vinified & matured solely in concrete, and can be enjoyed sooner than it’s ‘grand vin’ sibling. Not a second wine, but very much a different cuvée.