Château Capbern, St Estèphe, 2022

This is 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, and the élevage was in 60% new oak for 18 months. This presents a curious combination on the nose, of lightly crystalline red cherry with a dark, sooty, warm and spirity layer of alcohol-infused oak which brings a touch of whisky lactone to the aromatic profile at the moment. This should hopefully fade given time, but it does make me wonder about the wisdom of combining lots of new oak with high alcohol. Happily this character does not seem to translate onto the palate, which shows a finely polished substance, savoury and well-defined, with a wrapping of powdery tannins, which sit well within the saline and dried dark fruits until the finish, when they assume a more dominant role. While the alcohol seems to have a presence on the nose, this is not so evident on the palate, and given time to integrate I can see this coming good, although any such statements come with oak and alcohol caveats;the figure declared on the label, by the way, is 15%.

DRINKING WINDOW 2026 - 2042

date of review 06/2025

Concentrated in colour and in flavour, this is one of the few big name wines this year that really does seem to have lost typicity, but no doubt impacted by the hail more than the vintage itself. Lots of spice, deep clove spice, feels lusicous in texture, but more exuberant than usual, lacks some of that old school Capbern restraint. Harvest September 6 through to 27.28hl/h yield, following hail early in the season. 60% new oak for ageing.

DRINKING WINDOW 2026 - 2040

date of review 03/2025

The 2022 Capbern takes a few minutes to really coalesce on the nose. It has more red fruit than I recall compared to <em>en primeur</em>, with raspberry and wild strawberry scents, touches of wilted rose petal and a hint of dried blood in the background. This opens nicely with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with a rounded, very harmonious opening, well-judged acidity and a judicious dab of spice toward the finish. This finishes with style, perhaps better than the aromatics at the moment. It is promising.

DRINKING WINDOW 2027 - 2047

date of review 02/2025