The story of Petit Cheval Blanc began in 2006, when Château Cheval Blanc acquired Château La Tour du Pin, an eight-hectare vineyard producing red wine under the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru appellation. Part of the terroir offered fine potential for white wine, and so the decision was taken to convert it: this would become the birthplace of a white Bordeaux.
The former La Tour du Pin vineyard underwent a profound restructuring. Implementing such an ambitious project was lengthy and complex, in order to answer the question: if Cheval Blanc were a white wine, what would it be? The ultimate goal was to create a wine respecting the six fundamental qualities of Cheval Blanc: freshness, complexity, potential for ageing, depth, length, and purity. Five vintages were produced yet never released, constituting necessary steps along the path to excellence: Petit Cheval Blanc 2014.
The vineyard is characterised by a combination of clay and sandy soils planted with Sauvignon and Sémillon grapes, which give the wine its Bordeaux identity. Each plot is tended with meticulous attention and is vinified separately. Unusually for a white wine, barrel ageing lasts between 16 and 18 months — a lengthy period which allows the wine to evolve towards greater purity.
Notes and Reviews
Château Tasting
Tasting an outstanding new wine always makes your heart beat faster. It is like opening the shutters and discovering a new world of smells, sensations, and emotions. Petit Cheval Blanc transports us to one of these unique and exciting new worlds, one full of great aromatic complexity that is, however, never overbearing. The fruity nose features hints of apple, pear, bergamot, lemon, and grapefruit zest. There are also nuances of lychee, mango, and passionfruit, as well as white flowers and lime blossom. No one instrument predominates in this subtle symphony of aromas.
Echoing Cheval Blanc’s extremely precise balance, Petit Cheval Blanc reflects the elegance and complexity of its noble origins.
Petit Cheval Blanc is tremendously fresh, vivacious, crunchy, and juicy. This great white wine has an impressively long aftertaste and a real presence, but also a certain reserve. It is full, generous, and rich on the middle palate. There is no hardness or any metallic hint to upset the harmony. Starting with its first gallop, Petit Cheval Blanc is already surprisingly delightful, full of freshness and floral aromas. A new dream and a new history is born. And this passionate adventure has only just begun.
Product Details
| Vintage | 2016 |
|---|---|
| Grape Varieties | Sauvignon blanc, Semillon |
| Viticulture | Conventional |
| Type | White |
| Age of Vines | 12 years old |
| Vinification | Hand picked, pressed with pneumatic press. Settled for 24 hours in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats, then racked into barrels with weekly batonnage. |
| Elevage | 18 months in new oak barrels |
| Production | 4,558 bottles & 254 magnums |
| Soil Type | Sand, clay, and limestone |