Hubert de Boüard de Laforest thinks their 2019 might just snip what he describes as their ‘baroque’ 2018 at Château Angélus. Certainly the wines are quite different. There is greater freshness in Angélus 2019, which has real focus on the palate and a suave quality to the tannins. It is fractionally lower in alcohol than 2018 [14.4% as opposed to 14.7%] and overall the impression is of a complete and classy grand vin. Carillon d’Angélus too looks super good. The emphasis is on the Merlot here and there is a terrific seam of black fruit running through the wine. The Number 3 is zappy and fresh with the accent on the fruit. Amongst the other proprietary wines that the de Boüards are behind, Château Bellevue is wonderful. Lashings of creamy black fruit hide a significant structure. In Lalande de Pomerol, Château La Fleur de Boüard is a delight, with plenty of fruit and zap, while sibling Le Plus is fantastically concentrated. Over in Montagne St Emilion I was particularly taken by a fine and savoury Dame de Boüard which impressed. It shows the beauty of the Cabernet, alongside the Merlot, in this vintage.

Last Sunday I spent my third day examining Bordeaux 2018, this time at Château Angélus in St Emilion. The grand vin here is very exciting. Angélus has wonderful perfume, great depth and is multi-layered. Brilliant wines have been made here by the de Boüard family in 2015 and 2016, but 2018 Château Angélus is certainly up there in quality with these vintages, if more in keeping with the style of the 2009 vintage. For me Carillon d’Angélus is a marvel. It is the most exciting Carillon I can remember tasting en primeur. The fruit is beautiful and the tannins are wonderfully refined.

Château Angélus has made vivid, beautiful wine in 2017. The property reports that only a small part of the vineyard was affected by the April frosts. The remaining fruit benefited from the consistent weather during flowering and the hot June spurred vine growth. The vitality of the wine owes its origins to the dry but coolish summer, which helped the grapes retain freshness and acidity, as well as bright aromas. The relatively precocious state of the vineyards unaffected by frost meant that the vintage was relatively early, somewhat encouraged by the rainy period in September. Carillon d’Angélus also looks impressive in 2017. Château Bellevue is wonderfully lush and deep, almost irresistible at present. Château Daugay is soft and forward. Certainly there is plenty of joy to be had here in 2017 across the range of wines owned and managed by the de Boüard family.

The best wines in Lalande de Pomerol in 2016 have really good succulence and texture. My picks? Jean-Luc Thunevin has produced another beauty at Domaine des Sabines [pictured left]. This wine shows remarkable consistency year to year. Hubert de Bouard has produced two terrific wines in La Fleur de Boüard and Le Plus de la Fleur de Boüard. The former is ravishing; the latter profound and concentrated. Château La Fleur St George, another de Boüard property, also looks good. Château Grand Ormeau, Château Jean de Gué, La Sergue, Château Saint-Jean de Lavaud and Château de Viaud all impressed at the Grand Cercle tastings. Château Siaurac and Château Tournefeuille, two well-regarded properties, also show promise. Siaurac was a little backward but nicely structured and Tournefeuille displayed plenty of joyful fruit.