Le Petit Cheval, Chateau Cheval Blanc

The best second wine I have ever tasted from Cheval Blanc is the 2010 Le Petit Cheval. This wine is essentially three-fourths Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc. Rivaling the brilliant 2009, thirty percent of the production from this monstrously sized estate made it into this wine, which offers up plenty of white chocolate, cassis and mulberry as well as a hint of roasted herbs. With fleshy, round flavors, full-bodied texture and an amazing finish, this is no second wine, and considerably better than some of the Cheval Blancs of the 1960s and 1970s! Drink it over the next 15 or so years.

Possibly the finest second wine Cheval Blanc has yet produced, the 2009 Le Petit Cheval is a blend of 35% Merlot and 65% Cabernet Franc. It exhibits more caramelized notes than the grand vin along with a luscious, open-knit, subtle herbaceous component. This fleshy, sexy 2009 is ideal for drinking over the next decade.

The 2008 Le Petit Cheval (65% Cabernet Franc and the rest Merlot) is a light, but not a wimpy wine. It is more cedary and evolved, with spice box, tobacco leaf, licorice, and red and black fruits in a medium-bodied, classic style that should drink nicely for 10-12 years.

One of the stronger second wines I have tasted from manager/winemaker, Pierre Lurton, the 2006 Le Petit Cheval exhibits a dark ruby hue along with sweet red and black fruit notes intermixed with underbrush, forest floor, and licorice characteristics. This is a seductive second wine that cascades over the palate with no hard edges. Enjoy it over the next 6-7 years.

Cheval Blanc’s second wine, the 2005 Le Petit Cheval, possesses some of the character of its bigger sibling. Revealing a slight green streak among the cranberry and black cherry fruit along with medium body and a soft, plush texture, it is ideal for drinking over the next decade.

A fruity style of wine, the medium-bodied 2001 Petit Cheval (15,000 bottles), was made from 40% Cabernet Franc and 60% Merlot. It does not possess the weight of its bigger sibling, but there is admirable perfume, good vibrancy to the cool climate characteristics, and excellent definition. Drink it over the next 7-8 years.

The 2011 Le Petit Cheval (75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc) is very Pomerol-like (not surprising since this vineyard sits on the Pomerol/St.-Emilion border). Abundant notes of berries, leafy underbrush, currants, plums and a hint of Asian spices are found in this attractive, fruit-forward effort. Enjoy it over the next decade.

The fully mature 2000 Le Petit Cheval reveals some herbal notes interwoven with sweet red currants. Medium-bodied with lots of spice and menthol, the wine tails off in the mouth. It needs to be drunk up.

The second wine, the 2012 Le Petit Cheval, is composed of 75% Cabernet Franc and 25% Merlot. Straightforward, elegant, fruity, racy and classy, it lacks a touch of weight, mid-palate depth and length. Nevertheless, there is plenty to like. It should drink nicely upon release and last for a decade thereafter.

The well-made second wine, the 2004 Le Petit Cheval, is softer and fruitier than the Cheval Blanc,with loads of crunchy cherries intermixed with dried herbs, spice, and toasty oak. A blend of equal parts Merlot and Cabernet Franc (30,000 bottles produced), it will drink well for 7-10 years.