1996 Château Cheval Blanc

Community Tasting Notes (102) Avg Score: 93.4 points

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View etyc's profile
  • Report Issue

  3/1/2024 - etyc Likes this wine:

  Popped, and sat/breathed in btl for ~3-hrs prior to serving (blind) in the last flight of the evening, alongside the '95 Lafite. The bouquet opened up nicely from the glass, with notes of smoke, tobacco, menthol & dust. There was still primary fruits (slightly darker spectrum) with a touch of secondary flavours seeping through. Texture was soft with great freshness/acidity. Would've preferred this even more with a tad more concentration/weight. Most had guessed this a left bank, drinking side-by-side the '95 Lafite (non-blinded). Personally, I thought the Lafite was an inch ahead...

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View RayOB's profile
  • Report Issue

  9/16/2023 - RayOB Likes this wine: 97 Points

  Drank in London
  wow, always amazing

  1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View luHar1423's profile
  • Report Issue

  7/29/2023 - luHar1423 Likes this wine: 96 Points

  Yes, please - I want another sip.
  What a big surprise this Cheval Blanc 1996 showed in our blind "Summer of 96 Tasting event". Unlike many critics, who suggest to "dump" this wine asap, I believe it is just entering its second life. It was fresh, full of tasty fruity primary notes, balanced tertiary and yummy secondary notes with tannins and acidity tip the scales in perfection. I am not a Cab Franc and thus, a right bank fan (with some exceptions though;-)) but this one is surely making it to my bucket list.
  Continue to join and need to persuade my buddy to uncork his last White Horse 1996.

  1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View dream's profile
  • Report Issue

  7/16/2023 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points

  Definitely a leaner vintage of Cheval but not without its merits. Fairly structured still with crisp acidity matched by silky dark fruits and delicious flavors of bitter chocolate, violets, leathers and smoked earth. Medium-bodied and very terroir-driven with a fine crunchy complexity on the finish. I loved it tonight with hanger steak and while it's reached peak, it should continue to age well if the fruit hangs in there as the structure softens.

  1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View Rani's profile
  • Report Issue

  7/16/2023 - Rani Does not like this wine: 90 Points

  Very ripe jammy nose. On the palate way too simple and lacking complexity. Disappointing.

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

View all 102 Community Tasting Notes

Professional reviews have copyrights and you can view them here for your personal use only as private content. To view pro reviews you must either subscribe to a pre-integrated publication or manually enter reviews below. Learn more.