Chateau Les Grands Chenes 2018
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Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert - Decanter
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Dunnuck
Jeb
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Blend: 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Ripe blackberry and blackcurrant on the nose with cloves, damp earth and a touch of orange zest. It’s medium-bodied with firm, sleek tannins. Lovely precision and evolution with spice and walnut notes coming out on the finish. Try from 2024.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 les Grands Chênes comes bounding out of the glass with exuberant notes of stewed black plums, warm cassis and boysenberries, plus suggestions of pencil shavings, wild sage and crushed rocks. The medium to full-bodied palate is packed with energetic, crunchy black fruits, supported by fine-grained tannins and tons of freshness, finishing with a compelling herbal lift.
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Decanter
You feel the warmth of the summer in the texture and the character of the fruit here, but it has been extremely well handled, and there's a sense of lift alongside the Magrez signature glamour. Plush damson fruits demonstrate its ambition and sense of forward motion, with a flourish of oak edging. This takes its time and is chewy on the finish. Harvested 24 September to 11 October. Michel Rolland consults.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Readers looking for a delicious, ready-to-go Médoc with classic aromas and flavors as well as medium to full-bodied richness should snatch up bottles of the 2018 Château Les Grands Chênes. Loaded with plenty of darker currant fruits, notes of cedary herbs, and tobacco, ripe, almost sweet tannin's, and outstanding length, it's going to drink nicely for at least 10-12 years.
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One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
One of the most—if not the most—famous red wine regions of the world, the Medoc reaches from the city of Bordeaux northwest along the left bank of the Gironde River almost all the way to the Atlantic. Its vineyards climb along a band of flatlands, sandwiched between the coastal river marshes and the pine forests in the west. The entire region can only claim to be three to eight miles wide (at its widest), but it is about 50 miles long.
While the Medoc encompasses the Haut Medoc, and thus most of the classed-growth villages (Margaux, Moulis, Listrac, St-Julien, Pauillac and St. Estephe) it is really only those wines produced in the Bas-Medoc that use the Medoc appellation name. The ones farther down the river, and on marginally higher ground, are eligible to claim the Haut Medoc appellation, or their village or cru status.
While the region can’t boast a particularly dramatic landscape, impressive chateaux disperse themselves among the magically well-drained gravel soils that define the area. This optimal soil draining capacity is completely necessary and ideal in the Medoc's damp, maritime climate. These gravels also serve well to store heat in cooler years.