Chateau Corbin Michotte

Chateau Corbin-Michotte is one of five St-Emilion estates with the name Corbin. The estate belongs to the Boidron family, who has been involving in wine since 1760.

The current owner is Jean-Noel Boidron who inherited the estate from his grandparents, making wine there since 1855. Jean-Noel has also been teaching oenology and wine-making in Bordeaux University, and in 1980 the vathouse and cellars were rebuilt in an effort to improve the quality.

Seven hectares in total, the vineyard lies in the gravelly zone of St-Emilion, bordering to Pomerol. A single parcel of vineyard, with gravel, iron, clay and sandy soils, it is panted with 65% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, with average vine age of 35 years.

The wine is matured in 70% new oak, with annual production around 3000 cases. A second wine called Chateau Les Abeilles is produced.

I have recently tasted the 2001 vintage and below is my tasting note:

Appearance:

Bright and clear, it is of deep intensity ruby color, with garnet rims and legs.

Nose:

Clean, with medium (+) intensity aromas showing black fruit of dark plum and black cherry, maturity notes of mushroom, animal notes of leather, plus dried fruit of prune. The wine is developing.

Palate:

Dry with medium (+) acidity, the wine has medium tannin of ripe and silky texture. Medium in alcohol and having medium body, it has medium intensity flavors of black fruit such as blackberry and dark plum, dried fruit of prune, oak notes of vanilla, herbal notes of black tea. The wine has a medium finish.

Conclusion:

Good quality St-Emilion with a fairly intense nose showing reasonable complexity and developing characters, the wine has a good structure with reasonable concentration and complexity, as well as a fair length on the finish. Overall not something providing any surprises, either good or bad, and is a wine that is ready to drink now and not intend for further ageing.