Château L'Évangile, 2025
Château L'Évangile, 2025
- 75cl
- 13.5%
- Red Still
- Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon
- Organic
Please note, en primeur wines are not available for delivery until they arrive in the UK
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Est. delivery in 2028
L'Évangile sits on Pomerol's famed plateau, where the gravelly soils that neighbour Cheval Blanc meet the clay that defines this small but mighty appellation. This is Merlot-driven Bordeaux at its most seductive, blending power with an almost Burgundian elegance that has made it one of the Right Bank's most coveted names.
L'Evangile's vineyards occupy a unique position on Pomerol's plateau, where deep gravel beds meet the famous blue clay that gives Pomerol its character. This soil combination provides excellent drainage whilst retaining enough moisture to prevent stress, allowing the predominantly Merlot vines to ripen slowly and evenly. The proximity to Cheval Blanc's vineyards speaks to the exceptional terroir, whilst the iron-rich clay subsoil contributes the mineral backbone that distinguishes L'Evangile from more opulent Pomerol neighbours.
Pomerol may be Bordeaux's smallest great appellation at just 800 hectares, but its influence far exceeds its size. Unlike the Médoc's grand châteaux, Pomerol's estates are intimate affairs, many producing fewer than 1,000 cases annually. The appellation has no official classification, relying instead on reputation and terroir to establish hierarchy. Merlot dominates here as nowhere else in Bordeaux, thriving in the clay-rich soils to produce wines of uncommon richness and velvety texture, yet always with a mineral spine that prevents them from becoming merely hedonistic.
The 2025 Bordeaux vintage emerged from one of the most demanding growing seasons in recent memory — the earliest budbreak since 1989, June temperatures second only to 2003 since records began, and an unusually early harvest beginning in August for the whites. Conditions that should have produced heavy, overripe wines. They didn't. Decanter's Georgie Hindle, who tasted close to 200 wines ahead of the formal campaign, describes "exceptional concentration, aromatic purity and a freshness that contradicts the record-breaking heat.
The early critical consensus places 2025 stylistically between the precision of 2020 and the structure of 2016, with the brightness of 2023 — a combination that suggests a very serious vintage indeed. Yields are dramatically low, the smallest crop since 1991, with production across the Gironde running around 15% below the five-year average. The quality is here. There simply isn't very much of it.
What the critics say:
"The 2025 L'Évangile has been given new impetus by winemaker Juliette Couderc. It is initially backward, but it really comes forth with a few swirls of the glass: black cherries, mint and juniper berries, just a hint of truffle, quite vibrant and vivacious. Wonderful delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with svelte tannins, a fine bead of acidity, superb minéralité, as if there were a bit of limestone soil, but there is none. Very saline on the aftertaste with impressive length. This is a marvellous L'Évangile given the growing season, and it seems imbued with so much personality. "
"Damson colour, this has a ton of juicy blue and black fruits, well judged density, energy and lift, clear ageing ability, grilled cumin, peony, iris flowers, slate and crushed rocks, 40% new oak, with large oak casks for almost half of the production. Less Cabernet Franc in this blend simply because of the size of the berries. 3.7ph. Blason no longer sold En Primeur, so not tasted here. Juliette Couderc director. Harvest began on August 26 with young Merlot on gravel. 23hl/h overall yield, fascinating to see how they split across different terroirs in the L'Evangile vineyard - on gravel 15hl/ha, on clay 28hl/ha, on sand, 38hl/h all due to size of berries. In practise this meant a lot of intra-plot harvesting, going through four or five times. The result is impressive."
"The aromas of blackberries, black olives and hints of tobacco and dried fruit are fascinating and enticing. It’s medium- to full-bodied with creamy and polished tannins and a savory finish. Turns refined and focused after the layered fruit. Classic in character, with a caressing texture and balance. Hints of ripe fruit and freshness at the same time. 86% merlot, 13% cabernet franc and 1% cabernet sauvignon."
"Deep dark ruby garnet, opaque core, violet reflections, delicate edge brightening. Fine heart cherry fruit, a hint of fresh plums, delicate nougat, underlaid with candied orange zest. Complex, taut, tightly meshed, extract-sweet core, ripe tannins, good freshness, chocolaty touch on the finish, mineral aftertaste, sweet reverberation, powerful, storable style."
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Château l'Évangile
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