By Chateau Chauvin
2016 Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

The Vintage
Forged under an unusual climate, 2016 is a great vintage, enhanced by the terroir of Chauvin. The mild temperatures and high rainfall in winter were followed by an early and uniform bud burst. The wet conditions continued through spring with a historically rainy season. At the start of June, a favorable window in the weather allowed for uniform flowering - on 4 June for the Merlot, 15 June for the Cabernet Franc, and 23 June for the Cabernet Sauvignon. The veraison took place slowly from 5 August and spread over several weeks. After the drought in August, the light rains in mid-September gave back some momentum to ripening. Between daily tasting of the berries and analysis of the maturity, the wonderful month of October allowed us to begin harvest with complete calm. The harvest started with the Merlot, from 6 to 17 October. The Cabernet Franc was then picked on 17 and 18 October, and finally, the Cabernet Sauvignon on 20 October. These dates are historic for the property. Under exceptional conditions, the harvest is among the longest and latest at Chateau Chauvin!

Tasting Notes
On tasting, Chateau Chauvin 2016 is characterized by intense color and a distinguished nose that opens on aeration giving nice fruit and indicating ripeness. The attack reveals good concentration and complexity on the palate, carried by an elegant and silky tannic structure. Its freshness and its tautness are remarkable.

Wine Details
Appellation: Saint-Emilion Grand Cru
Classification: Grand Cru Classe
Location: To the northwest of Saint-Emilion, between Cheval Blanc and the Butte de Rol
Blend: 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon
Average Vine Age: 30 years
Density: 6,500 vines/hectare
Total Area: 15 hectares
Soil: Sandy-clay soil with the presence of ferruginous sandstone, clay sub-soil
Harvest: By hand, in small-capacity open crates
Aging: French oak barrels for 15 to 18 months, 60% new barrels

Vineyard Management
Mechanical working of the soil between the vines and central grass cover. Manual viticulture - trunk cleaning, leaf removal, and thinning out. Conventional integrated viticulture.

Vinification
Hand sorting in the vineyard and double hand sorting in the cellar. Cold skin contact for 2 to 5 days at around 8 degrees C before fermentation. Alcoholic fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation in barrel. Skin contact for 20 to 30 days, slow and gentle extraction.
[Information provided by Beyerman Wines]

CHATEAU CHAUVIN ST.-EMILION 2016
Sunday, February 3, 2019
Country: France
Region: Bordeaux
Vintage: 2016
Score: 94
Blackberry, blueberry and floral aromas follow through to a full body, tight and chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. [...] A chateau to watch in the future.

2016 Chateau Chauvin
Producer: Chateau Chauvin
Location: France, Bordeaux, Saint-Emilion
Color: Red
Rating: 92+
Tasting Date: 2/28/2019
Maturity: 2019 - 2027
Reviewed By: Jeb Dunnuck
Source: Bordeaux 2016: Firing On All Cylinders
The 2016 Chateau Chauvin checks in as a blend of 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon. This deeply colored effort offers a serious bouquet of blackberries and black cherries, scorched earth, graphite, and camphor. It's rich, powerful, and concentrated, with ripe tannins that kick in on the finish. My instincts say this will shut down, so either try a bottle over the next year or two or hold off for a good 7-8 years. Tasted twice.

2016 Chauvin
Rating: 92
Producer: Chauvin 
Wine Region: France, Bordeaux, Saint-Emilion
Variety: Proprietary blend
Color / Type / Sweetness: Red / Table / Dry
Reviewed By: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Drink Date: 2020 - 2029
The medium garnet-purple colored 2016 Chauvin has quite a meaty/savory nose of chargrill, black olives, sauteed herbs and truffles with a core of baked plums and lifted black cherry compote. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has a solid frame of rounded tannins and just enough freshness to offer a seamless boost to the long earthy finish.
Published: Nov 30, 2018

Chateau Chauvin, St-Emilion, Grand Cru Classe, 2016
Tasted by: Georgie Hindle, Vincenzo Arnese, Arthur Coggill (at Decanter Tasting Suite, London, 03 Mar 2023)
Part of Anson: Tasting St-Emilion's Chateau Chauvin back to 1998
Points: 91
Drinking Window: 2023 - 2035
Producer: Chateau Chauvin
Vintage: 2016
Wine Type: Still
Colour: Red 
Country: France 
Region: Bordeaux
Sweetness: Dry
Closure: Cork
Fresh black fruit aromas on the nose. Juicy and ripe, with crunchy red fruit and delicate freshness. The tannins are fine but present, sightly grippy with a mineral tang. Well-balanced, even if a bit lean, the finish is lovely with menthol freshness.

2016 Chateau Chauvin (St. Emilion Grand Cru)
Points: 91
Soft and polished, with layers of sweet, ripe, juicy plums, the medium-bodied, elegant, easy to like wine serves up sweet, red cherries and licorice with ease. You can enjoy this with just a few years of age.
Tasted Sep 21, 2019

2016 Chauvin
Producer: Chauvin
Place of Origin: France, Saint Emilion Grand Cru Classe, Bordeaux
Color: Red
Rating: 90+
Drinking Window: 2023 - 2038
From: The DBs: Bordeaux 2016 In Bottle (Jan 2019)
The 2016 Chauvin has a tightly wound bouquet of macerated small black cherries, blueberry and cassis aromas; it feels forward and generous, but it would benefit from greater delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with plump tannin, a rounded texture and firm grip, tightening up toward a linear finish that will need bottle age to loosen up. I am sure it will, hence the plus sign against my score. 
By: Neal Martin on December 2018

Chateau Chauvin St.-Emilion 2016
Score: 87
Wine Type and Color: Red Still
Reviewed by: James Molesworth
Primary Grape: Merlot
Issue: Online Only Review - Published on April 25, 2019
Region: France / Bordeaux / St.-Emilion
Toasty and direct, with dark plum and blackberry compote flavors, cloaked in warm ganache and roasted vanilla accents. Broad in feel, weighed down a touch by the toasty notes on the finish. [...]

Ch Chauvin 2016 St-Emilion
Producer: Ch Chauvin
Region: Bordeaux
Country: France
Colour: Red
Score: 16.5+/20
When to Drink: 2022 - 2035
Published On: 26 Jun 2019
Date Tasted: 5 Jun 2019
Reviewer: Jancis Robinson
Sylvie Cazes took over this property in 2014.
Very deep crimson. Rather attractively smooth, meaty nose with suggestions of a butcher’s shop. Nicely integrated, racy fresh fruit. This one bounds along with very well-integrated tannins that emerge only on the very end of the palate. Promising.