Le Carillon de l'Angélus, St Emilion, 2023
Carillon d'Angelus hails from the Bouard family's share of Bellevue, a site to the west of the commune near Figeac and a limestone vineyard in Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes. This is a really serious St Emilion opening with bright, aromatic berries, a hint of florality and some spice notes. Unforced, very natural with clear raspberry and fresh cherry fruit, there's a seamless delivery of fruit, engaging and intense with lots of detail supported by well-judged, mouthwatering tannins. 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc.
critic reviews
The 2023 Le Carillon d'Angélus has a fragrant and quite floral bouquet with black cherries, boysenberry and subtle violet scents that blossom in the glass. Fine delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with pleasing tension on the entry. This has a fine bead of acidity, quite linear in style, with sufficient sapidity on the finish to tempt you back for another sip. Give this a couple of years in bottle, then enjoy over the next 15 years.
A blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, the 2023 Carillon d’Angelus has a pH of 3.65 and it is deep garnet-purple in color. It comes bounding out with eager notes of juicy plums and fresh blackberries, plus suggestions of sassafras, black pepper, tar, and fragrant soil. The medium-bodied palate is lively and soft-textured, delivering vibrant black berry flavors, with a racy backbone and a lifted finish.
Bright violet and plum colour, vibrating with life, an easy wine to recommend as it no doubt will be to drink, love the depth and the rich damson fruit expression that combines with black chocolate, liqourice and cocoa with a juicy finish.
The 2023 Le Carillon d'Angelus, as usual a blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, exhibits attractive aromas of cherries, raspberries and blackberries mingled with hints of exotic spices, vine smoke and violets. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and polished, it's layered and enveloping, with a charming, seamless profile and a long, mouthwatering finish. As readers will by now remember, this bottling is no longer a "second wine" per se but rather draws on some 25 hectares of dedicated vineyards, emphasizing Merlot from the cool terroirs of Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes, complemented by holdings in the gravelly Figeac sector and on clay soils near Angelus itselfwith anything that doesn't make the cut relegated to the No. 3 d'Angelus.