Wine Advisor
L'Evangile 1995
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
A very deep, almost opaque garnet colour. A dense, oaky, toasty nose that is monolithic. A very sweet, ultra-concentrated palate that is dominated by new oak. I cannot find any finesse or elegance in this wine. A wine of dimension rather than substance. Bored by the end of my glass (and not the only one on my table.) Tasted again at the CECWINE vertical in September 2005. A similar nose to the bottle last February. Very New Worldy with a touch of espresso. It just lacks nuance and character. Ditto the palate: fleshy, high-toned, out to impress yet lacking substance and lacking typicity. I can understand why a wine-lover would admire it, but not a Pomerol-lover.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Tasted three times, this wine is closed, backward, and marginally less impressive after bottling than it was from cask. It is still an outstanding L'Evangile that may prove to be longer-lived than the sumptuous 1990, but perhaps not as opulently-styled. It remains one of the year's's top efforts. The dense ruby/purple color is accompanied by aromas of minerals, black raspberries, earth, and spice. The bottled wine seems toned down (too much fining and filtration?), compared with the pre-bottling samples, which had multiple layers of flesh and flavor dimension. High tannin in the finish and plenty of sweet fruit on the palate suggest this wine will turn out to be extra special. Could it have been even better if the filters had been junked in favor of a natural bottling? I think so, yet that being said, the wine's ferocious tannin level cannot conceal its outstanding ripeness, purity, and depth. However, do not expect this Pomerol to be drinkable for another 5-8 years, which is longer than I initially expected. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2020.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
This brilliant estate, adjacent to La Conseillante, Petrus, and Vieux-Chateau-Certan, has turned in exemplary efforts in 1993-95. An awesome success, L'Evangile's 1995 is opaque purple-colored, with a complex, provocative, profound nose of jammy blueberry and black-raspberry fruit nicely infused with smoky oak. The wine is fabulously extracted and full-bodied, with gobs of glycerin, extract, and richness. A profound, multi-dimensional L'Evangile, it will come close to equaling the 1990. Let's hope Madame Ducasse can keep the winemaking team of Lafite-Rothschild (who owns a significant chunk of this estate) from over-zealously fining and filtering this wine at bottling. Anticipated maturity: 2002-2022.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
This wine is closed, backward, and marginally less impressive than I thought from cask. It is still an outstanding l’Evangile that may prove to be longer-lived than the sumptuous 1990, but perhaps not as opulently-styled. It remains one of the year’s’s top efforts. The dense ruby/purple color is accompanied by aromas of minerals, black raspberries, earth, and spice. The bottled wine seems toned down (too much fining and filtration?), compared with the pre-bottling samples, which had multiple layers of flesh and flavor dimension. High tannin in the finish and plenty of sweet fruit on the palate suggest this wine will turn out to be extra special. Could it have been even better if the filters had been junked in favor of a natural bottling? I think so, yet that being said, the wine’s ferocious tannin level cannot conceal its outstanding ripeness, purity, and depth. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2020. Last tasted, 10/02.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
L'Evangile's 1995 is an awesome success. It is opaque purple-colored, with a complex, provocative, profound nose of jammy blueberry and black raspberry fruit nicely infused with smoky oak. The wine is fabulously extracted and full-bodied, with gobs of glycerin, extract, and richness. This profound, multi-dimensional L'Evangile will come close to equaling the 1990. Let's hope Madame Ducasse can keep the winemaking team of Lafite-Rothschild (who owns a significant chunk of this estate) from over-zealously fining and filtering this wine at bottling. Anticipated maturity: 2002-2022. Last tasted 11/97
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 1995's quality seems marginally superior to the splendid 1994. Its acidity is even lower than in the 1994. There is less grip, but compellingly sweet, jammy black-raspberry, mineral, and floral aromas jump from the glass. Medium to full-bodied and satiny smooth, with a voluptuous texture, as well as outstanding concentration and ripeness, the 1995 possesses a plush, velvety texture similar to the 1994, with more sweetness of fruit from the outstanding ripeness achieved in this vintage. This should be an immensely appealing wine in its youth, and should last for 15-20 years. Readers who wonder why some commentators have referred to Pomerol as the "Burgundy of Bordeaux," need only check out the expansive, perfumed, irresistible 1994 and 1995 offerings! All of the wines in this segment were tasted between March 19 and March 28 in Bordeaux. Most of the important wines from both the 1994 and 1995 vintages were tasted three separate times during my ten-day stay in Bordeaux.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at Roberson’s Pomerol tasting. This vintage of Chateau L’Evangile has always been a frustratingly perplexing, mercurial Pomerol and this bottle is not different. The nose is very strange, offering nothing at all at the beginning and then an earthy, slightly rubbery/reductive bouquet. Confusingly, the palate has much more to offer with a supple entry and rounded tannins. Dark cherries and dried orange peel, a touch of cranberry and a lovely harmonious long finish. It is such a pity about the nose because the palate is a joy. Tasted November 2010.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Tasted three times, this wine is closed, backward, and marginally less impressive after bottling than it was from cask. It is still an outstanding L'Evangile that may prove to be longer-lived than the sumptuous 1990, but perhaps not as opulently-styled. It remains one of the year's's top efforts. The dense ruby/purple color is accompanied by aromas of minerals, black raspberries, earth, and spice. The bottled wine seems toned down (too much fining and filtration?), compared with the pre-bottling samples, which had multiple layers of flesh and flavor dimension. High tannin in the finish and plenty of sweet fruit on the palate suggest this wine will turn out to be extra special. Could it have been even better if the filters had been junked in favor of a natural bottling? I think so, yet that being said, the wine's ferocious tannin level cannot conceal its outstanding ripeness, purity, and depth. However, do not expect this Pomerol to be drinkable for another 5-8 years, which is longer than I initially expected. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2020.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Very expressive, pungent, black raspberry and black cherry aroma, with game and roasted nuances. Dense, sweet and long; more deeply pitched and more obviously oaky than the '95, but with a faint herbal note I didn't pick up in the later vintage. Again, conveys the impression of crushed berry fruit. Long on personality.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
This is very tight and chewy with a medium body. Chocolate and berry character but slightly hard at the finish. I always found this unforgiving, even when it was young. I hope it comes around one day. We will see.
About the Producer
Chateau L'Evangile is one of the most famous châteaux in the Pomerol region of Bordeaux, France. In the mid-18th century, Chateau L'Evangile was owned by the Leglise family of Libourne, and its name, "Fazilleau", was recorded in the 1741 land register. At the beginning of the 19th century, the estate was bought by a lawyer named Isambert and renamed Chateau L'Evangile. Evangile is the French word for "gospel", and the renamed estate lived up to its name, becoming a true "gospel" of the Pomerol region. In 1862, Paul Chaperon acquired Chateau L'Evangile and made it famous through a series of efforts to give it a distinctive Second Empire style of architecture. In the second edition of Cocks Et Feret in 1868, Chateau L'Evangile was listed as a Premier Cru in the Haut-Pomerol region. After Chabron's death, his daughter inherited the estate, which she then brought to her husband's family, the Ducasse family, who ran the estate until 1990. In 1990, the estate was acquired by Domaines Barons de Rothschild Lafite. Immediately after taking over, the group began a comprehensive reform and upgrading of the estate. The first steps included a more careful selection of the grapes used to make the main wine and the creation of Blason de L'Evangile, Pomerol, France, as a secondary wine. In addition, the renovation measures included a comprehensive reorganization plan: delaying the harvest as much as possible so that the grapes would be as ripe as possible, and controlling yields to a maximum of 4,500 liters per hectare in order to improve the quality of the vines, which was partially completed in 1998. 2004 saw the completion of the renovation of the winery and cellars, and the creation of a new layout for the estate. These vintages produced wines of excellent quality. Chateau L'Evangile is located in a unique location. The vineyard covers 22 hectares of sandy clay and gravel soils with a high iron content subsoil. The vineyard is planted with 80% Merlot and the remaining 20% Cabernet Franc. The vineyard's production is limited, and harvesting and many other tasks are done by hand. The winery employs Michel Rolland, the famous "flying winemaker", as a winemaking consultant. Under the management of the Lafite Group, the grapes from each parcel are divided into different lots in order to determine their potential for full-fledged wines at the final stage of fermentation. All aspects of the winemaking process are closely integrated with traditional techniques and proven modern technologies. During the fermentation process, the winery performs drenching and maceration, during which the wine is tasted several times. After fermentation, the wines are aged in oak barrels for 18 months. Due to the small size of the vineyard, the average annual production of the winery is 5,000 cases. Robert Parker, the famous wine critic, has praised Le Vin de Guignol as the "star of the future" of Pomerol and believes that it has the potential to grow even more under the leadership of Lafite. A book published many years ago, Grands Vins de Bordeaux, described the wines produced by the Rocquières as "full-bodied, elegant, and with unparalleled finesse."
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