Chateau L'Evangile

About the producer

In the hands of Domaines Barons de Rothschild, whose illustrious stable includes Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Duhart-Milon and Château Rieussec, this Pomerol estate is now back on form - reflected in the lofty scores in recent vintages including its first 100-points in 2010. Having gone through a rocky patch through lack of investment, Baron Eric de Rothschild made his move on L'Évangile in 1990, taking full control in 1999. With neighbours including Pétrus and Château Cheval Blanc in the Saint-Émilion appellation, this was clearly an estate with location, location, location. What's more, its potential was clear from the acclaim it had received in the past: in the 1868 edition of the seminal Bordeaux wine directory, 'Cocks et Féret', Château L’Évangile was listed as a 'Premier Cru du Haut-Pomerol', despite this appellation having no official classification.

Producers could prefix 'Haut' to Pomerol if they were on the prized plateau, which continues to be the home of the best vineyards in the area. Edmund Penning Rowsell's 'The Wines of Bordeaux' (1979) also notes: "L'Évangile was a Pomerol with a very considerable reputation in the 1920s, and its vineyard sign immediately opposite Cheval-Blanc bears the inscription 'L'Évangile Haut Pomerol".

In the vineyard

Since the acquisition by Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) in the 1990s there has been significant investment in its vineyard, which lies at the southeast corner of the Pomerol plateau, with replanting and increasing attention to detail. There are a number of different soils across the property however a seam of gravel over clay marks it out as different from many other Pomerol producers. Above ground, Merlot represents 80% of plantings with Cabernet Franc making up the rest.

In the winery

In the hands of the Rothschilds, the existing winery was pulled down to make way for a new cellar which received its first grapes in 2004. There's nothing out of the ordinary in terms of winemaking with a traditional fermentation in vat and regular pump overs to extract colour and tannin. Following fermentation, the young wine spends 18 months maturing in oak barrel of which 70% are new. The Grand Vin typically contains around 10-20% old vine Cabernet Franc, however in 2017 the variety suffered during the late April frost, resulting in a rare 100% Merlot. Its second wine, Blason de L'Évangile, produced on the lighter, sandier soils generally contains a little more Cabernet Franc in the blend and is aged in second-fill oak barrels.

About the producer