50% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc
Aged for around 18 months in barrel, 60% new and 40% second fill, the 2018 Beychevelle needs a fair bit of swirling to release classic notes of cassis, plum preserves and ripe blackberries, with emerging suggestions of unsmoked cigars, tilled soil and cedar chest, plus a waft of pencil lead. The medium to full-bodied palate is still very tightly wound, offering finely packed black fruit and earthy layers within a frame of firm, grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing long and mineral laced. This will need a good 5-6 years to come around and then will drink beautifully over the next 20+ years. - Robert Parker
There is attractive tension in this wine between the dry tannins and opulently ripe black fruits. That sets the wine on a course of long-term aging. Bold, dense fruits are matched by the dry core. The wine will take time. Drink from 2027. - Wine Enthusiast
Violet and warm cassis aromas and flavors lead the way, melding with applewood, ganache, açaí and blueberry reduction notes along the way. Almost lush in the end, but there's a buried tarry streak giving it just a bit of grippy texture for contrast. Serious juice. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2023 through 2038. - Wine Spectrator
An unabashedly flamboyant, exotic wine, the 2018 Beychevelle possesses tremendous richness and raciness right out of the gate. Inky dark fruit, chocolate, licorice, spice, menthol and espresso infuse this sumptuous Saint-Julien with striking aromatic and flavor complexity. Soft contours and silky tannins add to its irresistibly sensual personality. Time in the cellar should help the new oak assimilate, but readers should be prepared for a full-throttle, heady wine. - Antonio Galloni
Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Mit Mandarinenzesten unterlegtes Cassis, ein Hauch von Lakritze, florales Bukett, etwas Lavendel, einladende Nuancen. Saftig, elegant, reife Kirschen, würzige, tragende Tannine, noch etwas Gerbstoff im Abgang, reife Kirschen im Nachhall, braucht Zeit, gutes Potenzial. (2025–2045) - Falstaff
The flagship 2018 Château Beychevelle is a more serious, concentrated, focused wine that still has that classic Saint-Julien purity of fruit as well as a wealth of fruit. Gorgeous notes of crème de cassis, chocolate-covered blueberries, violets, spring flowers, tobacco leaf, and cedar notes all emerge from the glass, and it's medium to full-bodied, with sweet tannins, moderate acidity, and a great, great finish. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, it's one of the sexiest, most up-front and irresistible wines in the vintage. Don't let that scare you, though; it's going to drink beautifully for 2-3 decades. - Jeb Dunnuck
Currants and blackberries with crushed stone and fresh herbs. Some flower stem, too. It’s full-bodied, yet tight and linear with firm, driven tannins. This needs four or five years of bottle age to open and come together. Try after 2025. - James Suckling
Das Château
Château Beychevelle ist ein angesehenes Weingut in der Appellation Saint-Julien in der nördlichen Weinregion Haut-Médoc in Bordeaux, am linken Ufer der Gironde-Mündung. Das Flaggschiff des Weinguts, ein von Cabernet Sauvignon dominierter Wein, ist für seine geschmeidige Kraft und seine weiche, reichhaltige Textur bekannt, und die besseren Jahrgänge sind sehr gut lagerfähig. In der Bordeaux-Klassifikation von 1855 wurde es als viertes Gewächs eingestuft.
Das 250 Hektar große Weingut befindet sich im äußersten Südosten der Appellation Saint-Julien, etwas außerhalb der kleinen Gemeinde Beychevelle. Das Château befindet sich östlich von Branaire-Ducru und südlich von Ducru-Beaucaillou.
Die Weinberge von Beychevelle erstrecken sich über 90 Hektar (222 Acres) auf tiefem Garonne-Kies, wobei 62 Prozent mit Cabernet Sauvignon bepflanzt sind, der im Wein selbst dominiert. Der restliche Weinberg besteht zu 31 Prozent aus Merlot, 5 Prozent Cabernet Franc und 2 Prozent Petit Verdot.
