Description
Château Canterane, Saint-Émilion
Whenever we unearth a Bordeaux gem like this, I can’t help but think how miraculous it is. How does a small producer like Château Canterane find a way to stand out in a region as vast, and crowded, as Bordeaux? There are some 6,000 other châteaux producing AOC-designated wine in the Bordeaux region, and even within Canterane’s home village of Saint-Étienne-de-Lisse, noteworthy wine estates are packed in cheek-by-jowl (including über-famous garagiste Château Valandraud, which is less than a mile away). Nevertheless, on one lucky day, the stars aligned in such a way that one of our favorite Bordeaux négociants (incidentally, one of 300-plus merchants dedicated to the Bordeaux market) put this magnificent, 2011 Saint-Émilion in front of us and it wasn’t long before we were asking for every bottle they were willing to part with.
There are lots of incredible aged Bordeaux reds like this one that can be acquired at incredible prices (like this one), but there’s a tremendous amount of sifting, sorting, and tasting that precedes getting something “on a boat” to share with the SommSelect faithful. This beautiful 2011 Saint-Émilion is like that one fish hatchling out of 100 that makes it to adulthood, ready to be reeled in by all of you. You should take your limit because this supple, elegant Right Bank stunner is only now coming into its own and still has a lot left to say. It will keep singing well into its second decade, which is not often said about $30 bottles of wine!
Adding to the against-all-odds appeal of this small-production gem is the vintage, which, if you follow the charts, wasn’t supposed to have produced a wine this good. It was a wet, uneven year, but the consensus was that the Right Bank got the better of it (thanks to its predominance of earlier-ripening Merlot and Cabernet Franc). But, as always, vintage charts are only going to take you so far: You may have to “kiss a few frogs” along the way, as we like to say, but the reward is a wine like today’s. If there were unfavorable conditions in ’11 at Château Canterane, you’d never know it, and it’s always good to remind folks that THIS HAPPENS ALL THE TIME, but you usually only hear about the famous estates.
The Canterane property spans just 10 hectares within the dense thicket of châteaux in Saint Étienne de Lisse, and has been in the Trabut-Cussac family for nearly four centuries (yes, you read that right—centuries). Vineyards sit on a south/southeast facing slope on Saint-Émilion’s clay/limestone plateau, with a varietal mix of roughly 85% Merlot to 15% Cabernet Franc (the eventual blend of the wine). Interestingly, this grand vin (top wine) is aged only in concrete vats, and I must say you don’t miss the barrels at all. If anything, aging in these more neutral vessels has only served to augment the wine’s silky texture while allowing some of the red-fruited characteristics of Merlot to show through.
That, to me, is what’s so classic about it: There are some darker plum notes and the soft, fine tannins characteristic of Merlot-based wines, but it’s very distinct from the glossier, plumper styles typical of neighboring Pomerol. It wears its Saint-Émilion badge proudly, with plenty of concentration but a more elegant, elongated feel and a healthy dose of tobacco, cedar, and herb notes. The fruit/earth balance is exactly what I’m looking for in an old-school aged Bordeaux, and the balance of all elements is what makes me think this still has lots of positive evolution still ahead of it. What can I say, I’m impressed, and can envision returning to this 2011 again and again in the coming years. Give it a brief decant (15 minutes, with an eye toward catching sediment, which should be minimal) and serve it in Bordeaux stems at 60 degrees with a simply prepared hanger steak or some grilled sausages and peppers. For all its buttoned-up refinement, there’s also a perfect hint of rusticity (and maturity) to allow for a more gutsy, down-to-earth pairing. Enjoy!
