2019 Château Canon Chaigneau, Lalande-de-Pomerol “Cuve 8a”

Lalande-de-Pomerol is no “flyover” appellation. Romans cultivated the vine here 2,000 years ago, its stone-built chateaux date back centuries, and the terroir shares many similarities with its immediate neighbors Pomerol and Saint-Émilion. Château Canon Chaigneu, founded in 1564, is just minutes away from the most iconic Right Bank properties of Petrus, Figeac, L’Évangile, Le Pin, La Conseillante, and Cheval Blanc. That last property is especially noteworthy because their maitre de chai, aka Cellar Master, of nearly 40 years left in 2018 to devote all of his winemaking hours to Canon Chaigneau.  Thierry Garnaud had been actively involved at the property since 1995, and a recent change in ownership bestowed him with the opportunity for more creative freedom, something you simply cannot afford to do at a heavily marketed Grand Cru Classé that charges $800+ per bottle. Today’s “Cuve 8a” is the first masterpiece of what will surely be many as Thierry and his team further develop their dyna