Château Canon, 1er Grand Cru Classé, St Emilion, 2024
Canon's terroir on the limestone plateau to the west of St Emilion has never been in doubt. John Kolasa has worked tirelessly to improve the health of the vines and rediscover the Canon's glory days. The 2009 and 2010 hinted at what this estate is capable of. 2015 confirms that this is now one of St Emilions leading wines. The new technical director, Nicolas Audebert, formally of Cheval des Andes has had a dream start to his tenure. The 2015 Canon is such an assured wine, brimming with energetic dark perfumed fruit, hints of graphite, violets and sandalwood. There is wonderful purity to the dark sultry fruits: luminous, polished, sweet, vital; it is utterly engaging. Dark chocolaty mulberry flavours are interspersed with high toned cranberry notes, complemented by the wonderfully sleek, pure cassis coated tannins. A tremendous Canon! Produced from 72% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc.
critic reviews
78% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc. pH 3.35. Aging 16-18 months in 49% new French oak. Deep garnet-purple colored. Prances out to the glass with eager-to-please scents of Morello cherries, fresh raspberries, and bay leaves, leading to hints of graphite and tree bark. The medium-bodied palate is subtle and lively with just enough red berry flavors and a chalkiness on the finish.
The 2024 Canon was picked from September 19 to October 9, a harvest that I witnessed firsthand while joining the pickers on one afternoon. It aged in 49% new oak and 6% casks for between 16 and 18 months. The bouquet is well defined with pure black cherry, raspberry and a subtle marine influence that develops in the glass, though I find the Troplong Mondot tasted alongside has more amplitude. The palate is medium-bodied and pliant with fine tannins and finesse. One bottle at the château had more weight on the finish than others that feel attenuated and missing a bit of substance.
This is a gorgeous Canon, with the austerity of limestone on full display, as you would expect in this vintage, but a creamy edge comes in through the mid palate. Clear precision, flesh pared from flesh, peony, peach pit, cherry stone, damson, blueberry, graphite, crayon, pumice, lemongrass, gunsmoke, this has tons of layers and waves of complexity, classical and balanced. 44hl/ha yield, organic certified. 3.35 pH. 49% new oak. Harvest 19 September to 9 October.
The 2024 Canon is shaping up brilliantly, wafting from the glass with aromas of sweet cherries, blackberries and raspberries mingled with notions of rose petals and spices. Medium to full-bodied, rich and fleshy, with tangy acids (the pH is a very low 3.35) and ultrarefined tannins, it concludes with a long, mineral finish. A blend of 78% Merlot and 22% Cabernet Franc, it's the estate's first year of organic certification.