Beychevelle 2018

St Julien, Fourth Growth

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Tasting Notes
An unabashedly flamboyant, exotic wine, the 2018 Beychevelle possesses tremendous richness and raciness right out of the gate. Inky dark fruit, chocolate, licorice, spice, menthol and espresso infuse this sumptuous Saint-Julien with striking aromatic and flavor complexity. Soft contours and silky tannins add to its irresistibly sensual personality. Time in the cellar should help the new oak assimilate, but readers should be prepared for a full-throttle, heady wine. Score: 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028 - 2043 25 August 2021
The 2018 Beychevelle is an exceptional, utterly vivid wine. Deep and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2018 has so much to offer. Super-ripe black cherry, crème de cassis, licorice, new oak and chocolate infuse this unctuous, spectacularly ripe Saint-Julien. Beychevelle is exotic, flamboyant and full-throttle, not to mention absolutely stunning. The high presence of Merlot in the blend gives Beychevelle much of its sensuality. What a wine! The 2018 is 50% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Tasted three times. Score: 93 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com 01 April 2019
The 2018 Beychevelle has a fresh, fragrant nose with plenty of blackberry, gravel, mint and incense aromas. It is not the most powerful Saint-Julien but it is certainly very well defined. The palate is medium-bodied with a crisp entry and plenty of sappy black fruit, quite dense for Beychevelle. Tasting it three or four times, the first example showed an unexpected greenness on the finish; however, this was not evident on the others sampled. Score: 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2024 - 2045 18 August 2021
The 2018 Beychevelle has the highest level of alcohol at the estate at 14.5% according to winemaker Philippe Blanc. It has an attractive bouquet with liquorice tinged black fruit that gains intensity in the glass whilst maintaining admirable definition. The palate is smooth in texture, moderate depth, a little softer than anticipated with black fruit mixed with (again) liquorice, mint and white pepper. It is certainly a flamboyant Beychevelle, but in my opinion that comes at the expense of a little typicité. It remains a thoroughly pleasurable Beychevelle, although I prefer the more complex 2016 at this stage. Tasted twice with consistent notes. Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2021-2040 01 November 2019
The flagship 2018 Château Beychevelle is a more serious, concentrated, focused wine that still has that classic Saint-Julien purity of fruit as well as a wealth of fruit. Gorgeous notes of crème de cassis, chocolate-covered blueberries, violets, spring flowers, tobacco leaf, and cedar notes all emerge from the glass, and it's medium to full-bodied, with sweet tannins, moderate acidity, and a great, great finish. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, it's one of the sexiest, most up-front and irresistible wines in the vintage. Don't let that scare you, though; it's going to drink beautifully for 2-3 decades. Score: 96 Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com Maturity: 2021 - 2051 18 July 2021
Showing beautifully both times I was able to taste it, the 2018 Château Beychevelle checks in as a blend of 50% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot, and the rest Cabernet Franc that's aging in 60% new French oak. This ultra-pure, refined, gorgeously layered Beychevelle offers terrific notes of black cherries, blackberries, cassis, violets, and damp earth. Deep, concentrated, and layered on the palate, it has a thrilling sense of purity and elegance as well as building structure. This is the third vintage vinified in the new cellar, and the 2018 represents a selection of 50% of the total production. It hit 14.5% alcohol with a healthy pH of 3.74 and a massive IPT of 81. Hats off to director Romain Ducolomb for another brilliant wine that I suspect will surpass both the 2015 and 2016! Score: 95 - 97 Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com 01 May 2019
Aged for around 18 months in barrel, 60% new and 40% second fill, the 2018 Beychevelle needs a fair bit of swirling to release classic notes of cassis, plum preserves and ripe blackberries, with emerging suggestions of unsmoked cigars, tilled soil and cedar chest, plus a waft of pencil lead. The medium to full-bodied palate is still very tightly wound, offering finely packed black fruit and earthy layers within a frame of firm, grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing long and mineral laced. This will need a good 5-6 years to come around and then will drink beautifully over the next 20+ years. Score: 95 Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2046 11 July 2021
The deep garnet-purple colored 2018 Beychevelle wafts sensuously from the glass with fragrant Black Forest cake, potpourri, star anise and black tea scents over a core of black raspberries, warm blackcurrants and kirsch with touches of fallen leaves and lavender. Full-bodied and packed with fragrant red and black fruit layers, it has a firm, velvety texture and fantastic freshness lifting the very long, perfumed finish. Beautiful! Anticipated time in barrel is 18 months, 60% new and 40% second fill. The tentative blend is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Score: 94 - 96 Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 23 April 2019
Currants and blackberries with crushed stone and fresh herbs. Some flower stem, too. It’s full-bodied, yet tight and linear with firm, driven tannins. This needs four or five years of bottle age to open and come together. Try after 2025. Score: 94 James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com Maturity: 2025+ 01 January 2021
This is concentrated with a solid core of fruit, yet it’s energetic and driven with plenty of pretty and forceful tannins. Dusty texture. Persistent finish. Score: 93 - 94 James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com 11 April 2019
Gorgeously brushed tannins with a smoked oak nose. This is excellent, firm and bright, layered and nuanced, gently inviting you in, with plenty of promise of life ahead. Has some austerity and although this is not in 2016 territory of 360-degree expansion, it is highly successful. A yield of 55hl/ha, with 50% of production going into the grand vin. 60% new oak. Score: 93 Jane Anson, Decanter.com Maturity: 2026-2036 10 November 2020
This is a dark, deep colour that perfectly reflects the rich blackberry and bilberry fruits on the nose. I really have noticed that Beychevelle has raised its game over the last few vintages and it's maintaining that step-up here. The 2018 is built to age, and will do so with very little trouble. It has violet edging, a good ripe tannic structure and is full of life. It's rounded in terms of mouthfeel, smoothed out but not knocked off balance by the alcohol. It may be approachable earlier than usual perhaps, but with class, ambition and St-Julien signature. A yield of 55hl/ha, with 50% of production going into the grand vin. 60% new oak. Score: 94 Jane Anson, Decanter.com Maturity: 2027-2040 15 April 2019
Ripe and concentrated, but very sleek, with a remarkably pure beam of cassis and plum reduction flavors. Sweet spice, violet and apple wood notes are thoroughly embedded throughout. Polished and very long. Score: 94 - 97 James Molesworth, Wine Spectator 28 March 2019

Tasting Notes

An unabashedly flamboyant, exotic wine, the 2018 Beychevelle possesses tremendous richness and raciness right out of the gate. Inky dark fruit, chocolate, licorice, spice, menthol and espresso infuse this sumptuous Saint-Julien with striking aromatic and flavor complexity. Soft contours and silky tannins add to its irresistibly sensual personality. Time in the cellar should help the new oak assimilate, but readers should be prepared for a full-throttle, heady wine.

Score: 96

Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028 - 2043 25 August 2021

The 2018 Beychevelle is an exceptional, utterly vivid wine. Deep and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2018 has so much to offer. Super-ripe black cherry, crème de cassis, licorice, new oak and chocolate infuse this unctuous, spectacularly ripe Saint-Julien. Beychevelle is exotic, flamboyant and full-throttle, not to mention absolutely stunning. The high presence of Merlot in the blend gives Beychevelle much of its sensuality. What a wine! The 2018 is 50% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Tasted three times.

Score: 93 - 96

Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com 01 April 2019

The 2018 Beychevelle has a fresh, fragrant nose with plenty of blackberry, gravel, mint and incense aromas. It is not the most powerful Saint-Julien but it is certainly very well defined. The palate is medium-bodied with a crisp entry and plenty of sappy black fruit, quite dense for Beychevelle. Tasting it three or four times, the first example showed an unexpected greenness on the finish; however, this was not evident on the others sampled.

Score: 92

Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2024 - 2045 18 August 2021

The 2018 Beychevelle has the highest level of alcohol at the estate at 14.5% according to winemaker Philippe Blanc. It has an attractive bouquet with liquorice tinged black fruit that gains intensity in the glass whilst maintaining admirable definition. The palate is smooth in texture, moderate depth, a little softer than anticipated with black fruit mixed with (again) liquorice, mint and white pepper. It is certainly a flamboyant Beychevelle, but in my opinion that comes at the expense of a little typicité. It remains a thoroughly pleasurable Beychevelle, although I prefer the more complex 2016 at this stage. Tasted twice with consistent notes.

Score: 92 - 94

Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2021-2040 01 November 2019

The flagship 2018 Château Beychevelle is a more serious, concentrated, focused wine that still has that classic Saint-Julien purity of fruit as well as a wealth of fruit. Gorgeous notes of crème de cassis, chocolate-covered blueberries, violets, spring flowers, tobacco leaf, and cedar notes all emerge from the glass, and it's medium to full-bodied, with sweet tannins, moderate acidity, and a great, great finish. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, it's one of the sexiest, most up-front and irresistible wines in the vintage. Don't let that scare you, though; it's going to drink beautifully for 2-3 decades.

Score: 96

Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com Maturity: 2021 - 2051 18 July 2021

Showing beautifully both times I was able to taste it, the 2018 Château Beychevelle checks in as a blend of 50% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot, and the rest Cabernet Franc that's aging in 60% new French oak. This ultra-pure, refined, gorgeously layered Beychevelle offers terrific notes of black cherries, blackberries, cassis, violets, and damp earth. Deep, concentrated, and layered on the palate, it has a thrilling sense of purity and elegance as well as building structure. This is the third vintage vinified in the new cellar, and the 2018 represents a selection of 50% of the total production. It hit 14.5% alcohol with a healthy pH of 3.74 and a massive IPT of 81. Hats off to director Romain Ducolomb for another brilliant wine that I suspect will surpass both the 2015 and 2016!

Score: 95 - 97

Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com 01 May 2019

Aged for around 18 months in barrel, 60% new and 40% second fill, the 2018 Beychevelle needs a fair bit of swirling to release classic notes of cassis, plum preserves and ripe blackberries, with emerging suggestions of unsmoked cigars, tilled soil and cedar chest, plus a waft of pencil lead. The medium to full-bodied palate is still very tightly wound, offering finely packed black fruit and earthy layers within a frame of firm, grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing long and mineral laced. This will need a good 5-6 years to come around and then will drink beautifully over the next 20+ years.

Score: 95

Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2046 11 July 2021

The deep garnet-purple colored 2018 Beychevelle wafts sensuously from the glass with fragrant Black Forest cake, potpourri, star anise and black tea scents over a core of black raspberries, warm blackcurrants and kirsch with touches of fallen leaves and lavender. Full-bodied and packed with fragrant red and black fruit layers, it has a firm, velvety texture and fantastic freshness lifting the very long, perfumed finish. Beautiful! Anticipated time in barrel is 18 months, 60% new and 40% second fill. The tentative blend is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc.

Score: 94 - 96

Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 23 April 2019

Currants and blackberries with crushed stone and fresh herbs. Some flower stem, too. It’s full-bodied, yet tight and linear with firm, driven tannins. This needs four or five years of bottle age to open and come together. Try after 2025.

Score: 94

James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com Maturity: 2025+ 01 January 2021

This is concentrated with a solid core of fruit, yet it’s energetic and driven with plenty of pretty and forceful tannins. Dusty texture. Persistent finish.

Score: 93 - 94

James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com 11 April 2019

Gorgeously brushed tannins with a smoked oak nose. This is excellent, firm and bright, layered and nuanced, gently inviting you in, with plenty of promise of life ahead. Has some austerity and although this is not in 2016 territory of 360-degree expansion, it is highly successful. A yield of 55hl/ha, with 50% of production going into the grand vin. 60% new oak.

Score: 93

Jane Anson, Decanter.com Maturity: 2026-2036 10 November 2020

This is a dark, deep colour that perfectly reflects the rich blackberry and bilberry fruits on the nose. I really have noticed that Beychevelle has raised its game over the last few vintages and it's maintaining that step-up here. The 2018 is built to age, and will do so with very little trouble. It has violet edging, a good ripe tannic structure and is full of life. It's rounded in terms of mouthfeel, smoothed out but not knocked off balance by the alcohol. It may be approachable earlier than usual perhaps, but with class, ambition and St-Julien signature. A yield of 55hl/ha, with 50% of production going into the grand vin. 60% new oak.

Score: 94

Jane Anson, Decanter.com Maturity: 2027-2040 15 April 2019

Ripe and concentrated, but very sleek, with a remarkably pure beam of cassis and plum reduction flavors. Sweet spice, violet and apple wood notes are thoroughly embedded throughout. Polished and very long.

Score: 94 - 97

James Molesworth, Wine Spectator 28 March 2019

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