Named “Cuvée 8a”, after the cuvée in which it was lovingly crafted - though we have given it the more lively nickname of “Beton” (French for ‘Concrete’)! Thierry Garnaud, our winemaker, retired as Maître de Chai at Château Cheval Blanc after the 2018 vintage and 38 vintages at the helm. To mark our first vintage in charge we wanted to introduce something new - a pure expression of our unique terroir, but more modern, without oak, and available as an everyday drinker, without breaking the bank. Made from specific parcels of slightly younger vines, it’s vinified & matured solely in concrete and can be enjoyed sooner than its ‘grand vin’ sibling. Not a second wine, but very much a different cuvée.

We are thrilled with the quality of our 2020s. The summer was, of course, hot and sunny, after a wet spring, and we had just about the right amount of hydric stress. With high sugars and potential alcohol, the fruit was dense, opulent, and juicy. It’s our first vintage 100% in charge and we increased selection (more hands on the sorting table) harvesting/ vinifying parcel by parcel also for the first time ever. We harvested over 17 days ensuring optimal maturity. We have a few parcels of very thick and gluey-dense clay. We had quite a bit of juice, total yields of around 53 hl, and performed a saignée of around 5% for the first time.