Chateau Lascombes estate spotlight
The official Chateau Lascombes US house film walks the Margaux second growth behind Chevalier de Lascombes, the second wine in this 2022.
2022 Chateau Lascombes 'Chevalier de Lascombes' Margaux, France (93WRO)
Lascombes' Merlot-led second wine, Wine Review Online 93, a Margaux 2022 you can open at thirty-five dollars.
The 2022 Chevalier de Lascombes is 68 percent Merlot and 32 percent Cabernet Sauvignon: bright cassis, blue fruit, spicy floral notes, and an elegant close after time in used barrels, now $35.
A Margaux second wine that drinks like a table wine, not a leftover
Chevalier de Lascombes is named for Chevalier Antoine de Lascombes, the knight who gave the estate its name. The 2022 is 68 percent Merlot and 32 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, aged in used barrels, built for freshness instead of the Grand Vin's Cabernet frame. Michael Apstein, Wine Review Online 93: suave Margaux texture, more complexity than most second wines, a delight now. Jeb Dunnuck 93: beautifully textured, medium-bodied, bright cassis and darker blue fruits, spicy floral nuances, 10 to 15 years. Vinous 90 called it a pleasant second wine not trying to be too much. This is the bottle that puts Margaux on a weeknight at thirty-five dollars.
The house
Same Margaux second growth as the Grand Vin. Lawrence ownership from 2022. Axel Heinz's hand is in the blend.
The wine
68% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Sauvignon. Used French oak. Built for fruit and early drinking, not a baby first wine.
The scores
Wine Review Online 93, Michael Apstein. Jeb Dunnuck 93. James Suckling 90. Vinous 90.
The drinker
Cassis and cherry first. Decant 30 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F. Steak or lamb chops.
Cassis and cherry, then blue fruit, spice, and a suave close
Dunnuck found bright cassis and darker, almost blue fruits with spicy floral nuances, elegant mouthfeel, a great finish. Vinous found ripe red cherry, blood orange, spice, and menthol, gentle and open-knit. Cellar notes add black raspberry, currant, black cherry, licorice, toast, and tobacco on fine chewy tannin.
A warm year that the Chevalier handles as fruit and texture rather than power. Dunnuck gives it 10 to 15 years. Apstein says drink now. Thirty minutes of air is enough.
Cassis, blue fruit, red cherry, blood orange, spice, menthol, black raspberry.
Medium, Merlot-led, used oak, fine chewy tannin, Margaux silk.
Floral spice, tobacco, length. Decant 30 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Merlot for silk, used barrels for fruit, the knight's wine
Chevalier is how Lascombes shows Margaux without the Grand Vin's new-oak Cabernet speech. The 2022 is 68 percent Merlot and 32 percent Cabernet Sauvignon from the same mosaic vineyard, raised in used barrels so cassis, cherry, and floral spice stay in front. Apstein heard Axel Heinz in the blend even though Heinz did not make the wine in the vineyard year.
Second wines exist so the Grand Vin can be stricter. Chevalier is the drinker's share of that decision.
Decant 30 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F. This is Margaux for a Tuesday steak.
Named for the knight, bottled for the table
Antoine de Lascombes was a knight. The second wine still carries his title so the Grand Vin can keep the chateau name.
Lascombes has long made a second wine. The 2022 Chevalier is the first under Lawrence, with Heinz already on the blend.
Merlot at 68 percent is high for the Medoc and is why Apstein found suave Margaux texture.
Thirty-five dollars against a $75 typical is the point: classified-estate Margaux you can actually open.
Steak, lamb, and a little cherry
Merlot-led Margaux wants a hard sear and a herb chop. Cassis meets char. Floral spice meets rosemary.
Two plates. One butter-basted steak. One rosemary lamb chop. Both can take Chevalier fruit and tannin.
Decant 30 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F in a Bordeaux stem.
Butter-Basted Ribeye
A hard crust, butter, and thyme. Chevalier's weeknight steakhouse landing.
Why it works: Fat and char cushion tannin while browned beef pulls cassis, cherry, and spice through the glass.
View Recipe for butter-basted ribeye (opens in a new tab)
Rosemary Garlic Lamb Chops
Herb-crusted lamb for Margaux's floral spice and Merlot silk.
Why it works: Lamb fat rounds the tannin. Rosemary echoes the wine's herbal, menthol close.
View Recipe for rosemary garlic lamb chops (opens in a new tab)Put this Chevalier de Lascombes in the cart
Margaux second wine, Wine Review Online 93, Jeb Dunnuck 93. Thirty-five dollars.
Put it in the cart. This is the Lascombes bottle for a table that wants Margaux fruit tonight, not a 2028 cellar speech.
