2020 Château Berliquet, St. Emilion Grand Cru

£218 per 6 bottle case in bond

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Today Château Berliquet has been released at £218 per 6 bottle case in bond.
 
It is the first release of the trio of Châteaux under the ownership of Chanel, with Châteaux Canon and Rauzan-Ségla yet to be released. Château Berliquet – which may not have been on your radar before now – has undergone a dramatic shift in style and quality since being purchased by Chanel in 2018. It was a very logical purchase, as this 7.5-hectare vineyard is essentially on very similar terroir to Canon itself.
 
It is situated between two blocks of Canon’s vineyard on the limestone plateau with a more notable clay component in part of the Berliquet vineyard than is prevalent in the vineyards of Canon. Initially, there was speculation that this might be subsumed into Château Canon, but head winemaker Nicolas Audebert stated recently that he saw the Berliquet vineyard as distinct, bringing about a different character in the resultant wine. He also recognised three sections within the vineyard: one largely limestone, one deep clay and one an erosion of limestone with clay and sand.
 
I tasted Berliquet 2020 and was impressed – I believe this to be the finest Berliquet yet under Nicolas Audebert’s team. It shows the freshness and poise which we have come to associate with the Chanel stable of wines, floral notes, juicy blackberry and stone fruit with good volume and an earthy nuance as well as an attractive zesty note. With more spice-laden fruit than Canon, it finishes vibrant with an impressive juiciness to the fore leading to a fine, persistent finish.
 
Please see below for scores and notes from Lisa Perrotti-Brown (The Wine Advocate), Michael Schuster (World of Fine Wine) and Jane Anson (decanter.com).