Chateau Fleur CardinaleChateau Fleur Cardinale 2020

Attractive aromas of blueberries and mulberries with graphite, dark licorice and crushed stones. Dark chocolate, too. Full-bodied. Impressive quality to the tannin structure that starts gently and glossy and continues to build, gaining power throughout the palate. Deep and dense with a velvety dark-fruited core. Really long, tense and persistent. 77% merlot, 18% cabernet franc and 5% cabernet sauvignon. Try after 2026.

Composed of 77% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, with an alcohol of 14.5% and a pH of 3.57, the deep purple-black colored 2020 Fleur Cardinale bursts from the glass with powerful notes of crushed blackberries, stewed black plums and Morello cherries, plus suggestions of star anise, pencil shavings and black truffles. The medium to full-bodied palate is chock-full of softly textured, juicy black fruits, countered by fantastic tension, finishing with great length and loads of earthy layers.

The 2020 Fleur Cardinale is elegant and refined from the first taste. Bright red berry fruit, spice, blood orange and cedar lend terrific brightness. In 2020 Fleur Cardinale is elegant, polished and restrained. All the elements come together so gracefully. I imagine the 2020 will flesh out a bit over time. Today, it is a bit restrained, but that is not at all a bad thing. A second bottle was even better. The 2020 could very well turn out to be a jewel of a wine.
-- Antonio Galloni

I tasted the 2020 Château Fleur Cardinale from three separate bottles, all of which showed brilliantly. Offering lots of red and black fruits as well as dark chocolate and rocky, earthy minerality, it’s a full-bodied, firm yet promising wine with terrific overall balance and length as well as purity of fruit. Short-term cellaring is the name of the game here, but it’s going to shine for at least two decades. It’s well worth seeking out.