Château Beychevelle is one of the most lovely places in Haut Medoc/Bordeaux. The chateau's front garden is extremely well-kept. Still, when you go into Beychevelle's backyard, OMG! It's a fantastic view of the Gironde, especially when blue skies and sunny weather act as perfect coulisse.
I've always admired Beychevelle, even if this wine sometimes needs more consistency. But when it's successful in the given vintage, like 2005 and 2010, you get the fair share of elegance, finesse, and refinement. And 100% pure Bordeaux wine as a gift for you! Beychevelle has always been affordable and has yet to jump on the wagon of skyrocketing prices.
Philippe Blanc, Beychevelle's manager, tastes with us. March 2015
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2023 Beychevelle (barrel sample) 95p
Tasted twice - last time in September 2024. Consistent notes. Fragrant cherries, blackcurrants, mint, elegance and finesse, complex, bright acidity, gentle tannin, vibrant, subtle oak, silky texture, and lingering finish. It's a very stylish wine.
2022 Beychevelle (barrel sample) 95-96p
Tasted in April 2023. 54% C. Sauvignon, 42% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot. Intense crunchy cherries, minty, leather, mineral, elegance and finesse, complex, gentle tannin, vibrant, discreet oak, velvety texture, and fine finish. It's a very stylish wine.
2021 Beychevelle (barrel sample) 92-93p
I tasted it in April 2022. It had intense crunchy cherries, mint, leather, mineral notes, elegance and finesse, complex, gentle tannins, discreet oak, velvety texture, and a lingering finish. It is a very stylish and attractive wine.
2020 Beychevelle 95-96p
Tasted twice - last time in September 2024. Consistent notes. 51% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Petit Verdot. Intense aroma of black fruit, excellent structure and complexity on the palate, silky berries and tannin, creamy and vibrant, lingering long finish. Great style and sheer class!
2019 Beychevelle 95+p
Tasted twice - last time in November 2021. Consistent notes. 49% Cabernet Sauvignon + 46% Merlot + 3% Petit Verdot + 2% Cabernet Franc, 13.7% alcohol. On the nose, it's full of aromas of blackcurrants and black cherries, refined and classy with great elegance, full-bodied, has cashmere everywhere, and a long and meaty aftertaste. It is a totally impressive effort.
2018 Beychevelle 95+p
Tasted four times - last time in November 2021. Consistent notes. 50% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. An extraordinary aroma of wild cherries and mocha, great structure and complexity on the palate, luscious berries and silky tannin, creamy berries, and great midpalate. It has a sleek and lingering finish. Classy, classy wine!
2017 Beychevelle 92p
Tasted twice - last time in October 2019. Consistent notes. 50% Cabernet Sauvignon + 45% Merlot + 5% Petit Verdot + 1% Cabernet Franc. Fresh, elegant, soft texture, complex, finesse, sappy, and persistent finish. This is a more refined and lighter wine from the property than usual.
2016 Beychevelle 96p
Tasted three times - last time in October 2019. Consistent notes. 47% Cabernet Sauvignon + 47% Merlot + 5% Petit Verdot + 1% Cabernet Franc. This wine showed great elegance and finesse, velvety texture, excellent balance and structure, and a persistent fruity finish. Aristocratic wine with great complexity and perfect structure. Fabulous stuff.
2015 Beychevelle 94p
Tasted three times - last time in November 2021. Consistent notes. Aromatic, gentle, polished, luscious fruit, great finesse and elegance, great length, seamless, velvety texture, and savory aftertaste. It's a great future.
2014 Beychevelle 94+p
Tasted three times - last time in November 2021. Consistent notes. 39% Cabernet Sauvignon, 51% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. It is very aromatic on the nose, with intense blackcurrants and blackberries. Well-structured palate with ripe dark berries and corresponding tannin, bright acidity, and meaty aftertaste. It's a classic vintage for the property.
2013 Beychevelle 89p
Tasted three times - last time in November 2021. Consistent notes. It was a challenging vintage in Bordeaux with bad weather conditions. Beychevelle made an OK wine, lighter than usual, charming, and round but a bit four-squared. I don't think it'll make "old bones".
2012 Beychevelle 92p
Tasted three times - last time in October 2015. Consistent notes. 47% Cabernet Sauvignon + 44% Merlot + 4% Cabernet Franc + 5% Petit Verdot. This wine offered very aromatic black cherries, concentrated, silky fruit tannin, splendid complexity, fine grip, and long aftertaste. It was a superb effort for the vintage.
2011 Beychevelle 92p
I tasted this wine four times, the last time in November 2021. Consistent notes. This wine offered aromatic fruit (black cherries) and was quite intense and powerful, with creamy fruit, fine structure, balance, and a finish on the palate. Terrific effort for the vintage.
2010 Beychevelle 95+p
Tasted six times - last time in September 2019. Consistent notes. 54% Cabernet Sauvignon + 38% Merlot + 5% Cabernet Franc + 3% Petit Verdot. Aromatic, chocolate, cacao, fat fruit, and tannin are sophisticated, refined, long, rich, and complex. It's a beautiful wine and an extremely graceful one.
2009 Beychevelle 93p
Tasted five times - last time in October 2015. Consistent notes. This wine was pretty aromatic, elegant, subtle, and full-bodied. Splendid aftertaste with a lot of flavors. Graceful and stylish.
2008 Beychevelle 92p
Tasted five times - last time in August 2011. Consistent notes. After bottling, it gained more depth and concentration. It had an excellent bite and is very aromatic, dense, and complex. Delicious wine.
2007 Beychevelle 91p
It tasted six times - last time in September 2010. Consistent notes. It offered a good treat for your senses with an exquisite, round, and charming wine with seductive cherry fruit aromas on the nose. This wine is still gaining more concentration and structure.
2006 Beychevelle 92p
Tasted three times - last time in July 2021. Consistent notes. Meaty and fleshy wine with perfectly ripe blackcurrants and raspberries, delicate balance, and long aftertaste. This was in September 2009. Almost 12 years later, with an elegant nose of Cabernet Sauvignon and black winter truffles, finesse, and elegance, it's still great enjoyment. Easily another 15 years in the cellar.
2005 Beychevelle 95+p
Tasted four times - last time in March 2009. Consistent notes. 47% CS, 46% M, 3% CF, and 4% PV. It is, without doubt, Beychevelle's best vintage in modern times. This wine impressed me greatly from the barrel in April 2006, and it's obvious it has retained a single inch of quality since then. It's a fabulous, thick aroma of dark berries, awesome, great length, balance, and concentration, formidable depth and aftertaste, and its full load of finesse, elegance, and graciousity. Seamless wine. How long will it last? 20-40 years.
2004 Beychevelle 92p
Tasted four times - last time in August 2011. Consistent notes. 55% Grand Vin. 45% CS, 42% M, 7%CF and 5% PV. Great, great effort from the property. It embraces you with a wonderfully aromatic nose, a taste of dark cherries, exquisite finesse, and elegance. It oozes the sheer class and pure style of traditional Bordeaux. This wine will last 10-15 years because of its delicious harmony between fruit and tannin.
2003 Beychevelle 88p
Tasted four times - last time in September 2010. Consistent notes. Harvest finished on the 30th of September. 53% CS, 34% M, 8% CF and 5% PV. It is a hot vintage, no doubt, as the fruit is warm but not cooked. Beychevelle seems to have avoided dryness and edgy tannin through careful and thoughtful vinification. Nice grip, balance, and depth. 5-8 years from now.
2002 Beychevelle 90p
I tasted it six times, the last time in September 2009. Consistent notes. It is a pure heartbreaker wine with its round and pleasant texture, luscious berries, and soft aftertaste. It has a good grip and an aromatic touch and is very impressive for the vintage.
2001 Beychevelle 91-92p
Tasted seven times - last time in July 2020. Consistent notes. 55% Grand Vin. 54% CS, 39% M, 6%CF and 7% PV. Very minty wine. Sophisticated, very elegant, very stylish indeed. Potent and with a delicate balance. Authentic Bordeaux wine without all these modern vinification gimmicks! One to keep for another 10-15 years. Still OK in July 2020, with a decade to go.
2000 Beychevelle 94p
Tasted twice - last time in November 2011. Consistent notes. This wine was very typical of Cabernet Sauvignon, with its minty character. It was sophisticated and refined with exquisite elegance, delicious fruit sweetness, great length, and fresh, lingering aftertaste. Seductive wine! 15-20 years horizontally. The bottle I tasted in November 2011 was even better, and I rated it 95p.
1999 Beychevelle 86p
Tasted five times - last time in March 2009. Not consistent notes. Troublesome vintage because of too much rain and too little sunshine! Wet cardboard, not fully ripe grapes, a bit dry on the palate, and short aftertaste. On its way down, it tasted much better in 2005 and March 2009.
1998 Beychevelle 90p
Tasted twice - last time in November 2008. Consistent notes. 49% CS, 45% M, and 6% PV. This vintage turned out to be better on the Right Bank than on the Left, as Merlot did better than CS. Quite dense and concentrated, luscious cherries, smooth and round on the palate. It lacks more depth and structure. 10-12 years.
1996 Beychevelle 93p
I tasted it twice, last in November 2008. Consistent notes. 52% CS, 35% M, 7% CF, and 6% PV. This is a spectacular wine for the vintage. Cabernet Sauvignon grew perfectly ripe in 1996, and you can taste it. It has a robust structure, impeccable balance, a splendid concentration of ripe blackcurrants and truffles, and a deep and multilayered palate. It is an excellent and stylish wine with 10-15 more years to go.
1995 Beychevelle 90p
Tasted in March 2009. It is a very aromatic and stylish wine with enchanting elegance and finesse. Creamy fruit and soft texture, round and gentle wine. There is pleasure for all the money in this wine, and it already drinks excellent.
1993 Beychevelle 85p
Tasted in April 2008 at the property. This wine showed barely perfect ripe fruit, but you don't expect too much when you know the bad weather was in this vintage. It's just a decent and quickly maturing wine.
1991 Beychevelle 82p
Tasted in April 2008 at the property. 20% of potential grapes went lost when black frost hit Bordeaux on the 21st of April. This wine showed unripe fruit, a smell of wet cardboard, and edgy tannins, already in vast decline.
1988 Beychevelle 92p
Tasted in April 2008 at the property. The last time I tasted Beychevelle in 1988 was in 1990 during a tasting in Copenhagen of 20+ vintages, but it has mostly stayed the same since then. Still dark ruby red, complex on the nose and palate, well-knitted, with refined concentration and balance, plus a smooth finish. Nice treat!
1986 Beychevelle 93p
Tasted twice - last time in November 2008. Consistent notes. I like this wine! This gem from a great Cabernet Sauvignon year didn't disappoint. It was a splendid wine with much stuffing, firm structure, leather, tobacco, outstanding balance, and a long aftertaste. It still has 6-8 more years to go.
1982 Beychevelle 94p
Tasted in April 2008 at the property from magnum. This wine was simply a beauty, with all the ingredients this vintage is famous for. Dense, full of perfectly ripe fruit, great structure, finesse, refinement, and superb balance. It's a great, great vintage for Beychevelle. 6–10 more years in the cellar. A 0.75 l bottle of this vintage was tasted in November 2008 - more developed than I thought. It's a bit jammy. Otherwise, it is nicely balanced and has tasty dark fruit. 89p.
1978 Beychevelle 87p
Tasted in April 2008 at the property. This wine tried very hard to follow in the footsteps of 1986 but had some greenish aroma on the nose and seemed not to have ripe fruit on the palate. Beychevelle's manager, Philippe Blanc, explained that Cabernet Sauvignon plots were harvested too early at Beychevelle in this vintage.
1975 Beychevelle 88p
Tasted in November 2008. It's not my favorite vintage on the Left Bank, but Saint-Julien did come up with some pretty good wines. Beychevelle suffers a bit from not fully ripe CS, but overall, it's a very nicely made wine with no aggressive tannins, good depth, and a gentle aftertaste.
1970 Beychevelle 93p
I tasted this wine twice, the last time in April 2008 at the property. It reminded me of an adorable bottle I tasted in 1990 in Copenhagen. It is a tight, perfectly structured, well-balanced wine that impressed me with its youthfulness, length, and finishes. Delightful.
1966 Beychevelle 89p
Tasted in April 2008 at the property. This wine had the same flavors as 1978 but with much lesser intensity. It was a broad-shouldered, compact, firm, and robust wine that wasn't over the hill. It will keep its ingredients together for a couple of more years.
1959 Beychevelle 94p
It tasted at Domaine de Chevalier in March 2019. It was not in the same class as 1949, but you were quickly impressed by this wine's elegance, finesse, and graciousness. It is simply a delicious and delicate wine.
1955 Beychevelle 95p
I tasted it twice, last in November 2008. Consistent notes. It was an enormous pleasure to "meet" such an excellent and sophisticated piece of Beychevelle's history. It is an incredible, seductive, refined, beautifully balanced, and sweetly finishing wine. In November 2008, it had a very pure aroma of truffles. I will be going that strong for 5-6 more years.
1949 Beychevelle 97p
I tasted this wine in March 2019 during dinner at Domaine de Chevalier. This bottle came from my cellar and was recorked in the 1990s. It tasted still young and virile, with great acidity, an excellent truffle aroma, pure elegance and finesse, and a delicate and lingering finish. It's a stunning wine. It's very similar to the fabulous 1945 Beychevelle I tasted in 2015!
1945 Beychevelle 97p
Tasted in March 2015 during dinner at Domaine de Chevalier. Truffles, a beautifully aromatic nose, a stunningly gracious and stylish wine, and an excellent palate with lively fruit, tannin, and acidity. It's a smooth and generous finish. Awesome stuff!
Heavenly stuff!
1934 Beychevelle 97p
Tasted in April 2008 at the property. It was a showstopper of high esteem. I also tasted this wine in 1990, but it was Danish bottling, impressive but not entirely up to chateau bottled. This genuine 1934 from the cellars of Beychevelle was a pure delight and a perfect example of how beautifully Bordeaux can age. It has a fantastic structure, incredible balance, refined elegance and finesse, silky fruit, and what a seduction. It is simply an outstanding wine!!
1928 Beychevelle 97p
Tasted in November 2002. It is an impressively dark color. Dense and intense on the nose, potent with ripe fruit, cocoa, and chocolate on the palate. It's a fabulous wine that is still going strong.