Lea & Sandeman Wine Merchants

CHÂTEAU CANON

2014 1er Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion

IN STOCK
Grapes Cab Franc, Merlot
Colour Red
Origin France, Bordeaux
District Right Bank
Sub-district Saint Emilion & Satellites
Village Saint Emilion
Classification 1er Grand Cru Classé
ABV 14%

Tasted as part of a wonderful vertical of Canon, the 2014 is very smart wine. Lovely restraint and elegance. Clear lines and richly textured. Full of cherry flesh and some tangy blackberry notes. This has great weight but also a well carved-out shape. Long and intense. Recommended for St Emilion. 72% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Franc. Rating: 94 L&S (Mar 2015)

*Case price discount: Mix any 12 bottles of wine (or 9 litre equivalent) or 6 bottles of Champagne, Spirits, Sweet Wine or Fortified (4.5 litres) to get the discounted 'case price' for each bottle.

Deep plum colour, with peaty, smoky depths on the nose. You can drink today if you enjoy richer fruit flavours but it has the potential to age further and develop complex tertiary aromatics over the next few decades. Great stuff, soft cocoa bean and dried herb spices, then as it opens the tannins soften and elongate. 36hl/h yield, 80% new oak, 3.7ph, harvest September 29 to October 9. John Kolasa's last vintage. Drinking range: 2022 - 2042 Rating: 95 Jane Anson, Decanter (Sept 2021)

The 2014 Canon has an intense bouquet with blackberry, raspberry, briary and light tobacco scents, gradually gaining more precision with aeration yet remaining classic in style. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, a fine bead of acidity, harmonious and poised with a structured yet precise finish that is pure class. Perhaps you might argue that it lacks some charm at this early stage but at the same time, I am fascinated to see how it will age. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2050 Rating: 95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Mar 2018)

The 2014 Canon is delicate, polished and restrained, with striking aromatic presence, silky tannins and exceptional length, all of which reinforce an impression of total finesse. Not an obvious wine, the 2014 will need time to fully come together and perhaps flesh out a little more. Even so, it is quite pretty and expressive in the early going. This is the last vintage overseen by John Kolasa, who, among other things, laid a foundation at Canon that sets the property up brilliantly for the future. Drinking range: 2018 - 2034 Rating: 94+ Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2017)

Château Canon

Atop the limestone plateau of St Emilion, and just west of the village, is Château Canon. Originally named Clos St Martin, the vineyard was bought by privateer and naval man Jacques Kanon in 1760. He expanded the vineyard beyond the original clos walls and built the château, but sold up after 10 years of tenure to the Fontémoing family. At some point, they also owned Château Canon in Fronsac which may account for the current name for the St Emilion estate, but it is more likely named for the dashing Jacques Kanon – either way, the owners of the Fronsac estate were not best pleased when Clos St Martin morphed into Château Canon in 1853. For most of the 20th Century, Château Canon was owned by the Fournier family but their tenure was one of gradual and sad decline. In 1996, they sold up to Alain and Gerard Wertheimer who had not long purchased Rauzan-Ségla in Margaux. Fortunately, the Wertheimers, owners of Chanel, had the wherewithal to attend to Canon’s many problems. A long term programme of complete replanting of the vineyards was started and the winery was completely renewed. The vineyard area has been expanded by the purchase of a couple of near-by plots. The, now, 34ha are planted with 65% Merlot and 35% Cabernet Franc. Opinions on Château Canon’s wines can be mixed, although tasters views may be tainted by memories of disappointing wines from the recent past. There is little denying that quality has improved considerably under the Wertheimers. In the 1996 St Emilion classification, Château Canon was granted Premier Grand Cru Classé (B) status, something re-affirmed by the 2006 and 2012 revisions. The second wine of Château Canon, first produced in 2000, was Clos Canon but will be known as Croix Canon from the 2011 vintage.

This wine isn't currently part of a mixed case, but you can always browse our full selection of mixed cases here.
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