2022 Château Berliquet, Grand Cru Classé St-Emilion

Dark damson colour, beautiful sense of upliflt and freshness, with mint leaf, sage, wild rosemary, cassis fruits. Slate texture to the wine here, feels carved out and crafted, with edges of austerity that constrict the cassis and raspberry fruit. 44% new oak, 8 amphoras (around 10% of overall), the rest in one year old barrel, 45hl/h yield. Great stuff.

Candied cherries, tapenade, violets, and floral notes all emerge from the 2022 Château Berliquet, a medium to full-bodied, seamless Saint-Emilion that brings plenty of ripeness while staying nicely balanced, light on its feet, and elegant. Based on 65% Merlot and 35% Cabernet Franc, from yields of 31.2 hectoliter per hectare, it will spend 16 months in 44% new French oak, with a portion of the blend aged in amphora. This isn't the most powerful or opulent wine in the vintage, but it's as seamless and graceful as they come.

The 2022 Berliquet is brilliant, bursting with aromas of plums, wild berries and lilac, followed by a medium to full-bodied, concentrated and vibrant palate that's deep and mineral. It's likely to be another of the vintage's more attractive en primeur proportions. This estate just goes from strength to strength—and that's before its new winery has been constructed! One of the most significant changes has been opting to retain higher canopies, which means that the fruiting zone of rows planted along the slope are now shaded, preserving freshness.

Lots of dark and crushed stones with blackberries and black olives. Dark earth. Full-bodied and more concentrated with very intense fruit and chewy tannins. Velvety and slightly rough, but all there.

The 2022 Berliquet is super-concentrated, dark and ripe, but also without the forbidding tannins of the past. Succulent plum fruit, mocha, licorice and dried herbs are some of the many notes that grace this gorgeous Saint-Émilion. It will be interesting to see where the 2022 ends up post élevage. Today it is full-bodied and quite opulent. Tasted four times.