Château Canon, 1er Grand Cru Classé, St Emilion, 2022
"Remarkable ripeness of the Cabernet Franc. Charm and fleshiness of the Merlot. Dense but right. Canon above all", is how Nicolas Audebert sums up the 2022 vintage. The limestone Cote of St Emilion has produced some thrilling wines and it comes as no surprise that Canon is one of the leading lights. What a glorious wine, full of sophistication, charm and energy, with a clear limestone signature. Initially floral, notes of herbs and salt underpinned by dark berries and plum stones. The palate displays the ripeness of the vintage with beautiful robe of purple fruit and fresh cherry: vivid and pulsating with life. Although concentrated, you're left with a sense of fine grained classicism. A wine of perfect harmony, the tannins possess a distinct limestone character, while the fruit has a wonderful combination of density and lift. 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc.
critic reviews
The 2022 Canon has a more floral bouquet, with violet and wilted rose petal infusing the red fruit, well defined, with an underlying mineralité manifesting with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, brisk and focused, sapid with a tingle of allspice towards the sustained and animated finish. Great potential and unequivocally one of the greatest vintages of Canon in recent years. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting in London.
This is 75% Merlot, and 25% Cabernet Franc, matured in barrel for 18 months, including 50% new oak. Harvesting started at 5 am here, by torchlight, to keep the coolness and freshness in the fruit. Revisited now that it is in bottle it shows quite reticently on the nose, being slow to reveal its dark and brooding yet floral aromatics, with notes of cranberry, black cherry, black pepper and white rose petals, as well as the suggestion of a defined and linear limestone tension. The palate holds together well, with a very restrained and yet perfumed core of fruit, supported by a rich limestone tannic structure, giving it a bright and peppery edge. It feels elegant and pure, focused and long, with a midpalate and finish wrapped in powdery tannins. It has length, although it is packed out with a tannic grip which lingers on and on. This is a super Canon, filled with tension and structure;it is set to develop in a quite brilliant fashion. Tasted three times. The alcohol on the label is 14.5%.
Well structured, an exceptional wine, and one that will age without a worry. Great depth to the creamy black, blue and red fruits, enjoyable sage and white pepper spice, touches of lemongrass and mandarin peel, plenty of concentration, has signature and complexity, with an ocean spray salinity on the finish. 45hl/h yield after careful vineyard work to protect the grapes from the heat, aged in 50% new oak, including four large oak casks, in organic conversion.
From an estate that is delivering its greatest run of vintages since the superb Post War series that preceded the frosts of 1956, the 2022 Canon is a magical wine that will be worth every effort to track down. Wafting from the glass with aromas of dark berries, wild plums and cherries mingled with hints of bay leaf, spices and violets, it's full-bodied, layered and multidimensional, with huge levels of concentration, vibrant acids and beautifully refined tannins. Concluding with a long, saline finish, this pure, perfumed and ineffably complete Canon is built for the ages, even if its structural polish is such that it will be approachable at a surprisingly early age.