Chateau Angelus 2015

Three bells and a dowry of vines

The de Bouard family's roots in the region run deep: according to family archives cited by the critic Jeff Leve, they have been in Bordeaux since 1544, and in 1626 they began buying land in the Dordogne. Their story at Saint-Emilion begins in 1910, when Comte Maurice de Bouard de Laforest inherited the Domaine de Mazerat. In 1922 his wife, Elisabeth Bouchet, bought a plot of vines called Clos de L'Angelus, 3.5 hectares by Leve's count.

The name comes from an everyday sound. From the vineyard, workers could hear the Angelus bells ring from three places: the chapel at Mazerat, the church of Saint-Martin de Mazerat and Saint-Emilion itself. The bell became the estate's emblem and appears on the label. The family added about 13 hectares bought from the Gruchy family, owners of neighboring Chateau Laroze, and a plot from land that became Beau-Sejour Becot; one reference dates that last purchase to 1969.

There is a family echo in the vineyard too. Cabernet Franc, which today makes up almost half of the plantings, was once known in Bordeaux as Bouchet, the maiden name of Elisabeth Bouchet, Hubert de Bouard's grandmother.

Hubert de Bouard's turnaround

The estate made celebrated wines in the 1950s, but Leve writes that by the 1960s quality had slipped, and that even in strong years such as 1982 and 1985 Angelus underperformed. The turnaround came with Hubert de Bouard de Laforest, who joined the family business in 1976 after studying under the enologist Emile Peynaud at Bordeaux. Aging in new oak began in 1980, according to one reference.

Hubert changed the name from L'Angelus to Angelus, which one reference dates to 1990; Leve quotes him as saying the change let the wine 'show up first in alphabetized lists.' In the cellar he was among the first in Bordeaux to ferment in open-top vats and to run malolactic fermentation in small barrels, and he borrowed Burgundian techniques such as whole-berry fermentation, aging on the lees and parcel-by-parcel vinification. In the vineyard he lowered yields, green-harvested, raised vine density and improved drainage. The consultant enologist Michel Rolland has also worked with the estate.

Recognition followed. Angelus was promoted to Premier Grand Cru Classe B in 1996 and, in the classification announced on September 6, 2012, to the top rank, Premier Grand Cru Classe A, one of only four Saint-Emilion estates to hold it. To mark the promotion, the 2012 was bottled in a black bottle with the script printed in gold in place of a paper label. That same year Hubert's daughter, Stephanie de Bouard-Rivoal, was named executive manager.

Hubert was also a marketer. Angelus moved early into China, where, Leve writes, the wine is known as Kin Chung, 'the golden bell,' and the estate secured a place in the James Bond films; one reference counts three Bond appearances, beginning with Casino Royale.

Slopes, limestone and old Cabernet Franc

Sources disagree on the size of the estate. Leve gives 42 hectares in one passage and, in another, 39 hectares of vines of which only 27 are classified and used for the grand vin, the rest going to the second wine, Carillon d'Angelus, and a third wine, No. 3 d'Angelus. Another reference gives 23.4 hectares. Leve puts the plantings at 50% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon across 54 parcels; the other reference gives 51%, 47% and 2%.

The best sites are at the top of the slopes beside Beau-Sejour Becot and Beausejour Duffau, on clay and limestone with a southern exposure; lower down the soil turns sandier over dense clay, which Leve says suits Cabernet Franc in hot, dry years. Some vines date to 1918, and 10 hectares of Cabernet Franc are more than 60 years old. The estate converted to organic farming in 2018 and was certified in 2021, Leve reports.

A renovation designed by the architects Jean-Pierre Errath and Arnaud Boulain, which Leve estimates at more than 10 million euros, gave Angelus new cellars, a reception center and a bell tower, and was finished in early 2014. One critic describes a carillon of 20 bells installed at the time that plays a visitor's national anthem at the push of a button. Inside, fermentation runs in wood, stainless steel and concrete vats, everything moves by gravity, and the grand vin is aged 18 to 24 months in new French oak. Production of the grand vin is about 8,500 cases a year by Leve's figure and about 10,000 by another reference's.

2015: 'The Magnifique'

The estate titled its own report on the 2015 'The Magnifique' and called it 'a blessed, dreamt-of year.' Flowering was even; rain came before a very dry June and July; August brought timely showers and mild temperatures; and fine September days with cool nights ripened the tannins. With the vineyard in perfect health, the team could pick 'as and when we wanted ... over nearly a month.'

Merlot was picked from September 22, 'ripe but not overripe,' and Cabernet Franc from October 8. Neal Martin, writing for The Wine Advocate, and a Decanter note both put the end of the harvest on October 14. The final blend is 62% Merlot and 38% Cabernet Franc. Martin recorded that younger Cabernet Franc vines went into the second wine, and that the wine was aged in 100% new oak kept at 11 degrees Celsius so that less sulfur would be needed. The second wine, Carillon d'Angelus 2015, was 50% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Decanter's critic called 2015 'a vintage that favoured St-Emilion' and said Angelus had 'made the most of it.' Jeb Dunnuck called it 'a total blockbuster ... reminiscent of a slightly more elegant 2009' and expected it to keep for three decades or more.

Scores and the release

From barrel in April 2016, Neal Martin gave 95-97. In bottle, The Wine Advocate gave 97, Dunnuck 97+, Wine Enthusiast 97 (a Cellar Selection), Wine Spectator 96, Antonio Galloni of Vinous 95+ and The Wine Independent 98. Jeff Leve, tasting it on March 15, 2026, gave 99 and called it 'already sublime in your glass.' Some scores differ by source: one U.S. merchant lists James Suckling at 99 and Decanter at 95, while another lists Suckling at 97 and Decanter at 96.

Angelus released the 2015 at 252 euros a bottle from the negociants. When the estate opened the 2018 en primeur campaign in 2019, it went back to exactly that price, a move Decanter called a 'sensible move' back to the 2015 level and 8.7% below the 2017's 276 euros.

In October 2026, U.S. merchants listed the 2015 in 750 ml bottles at $449, at $464.27 (by the six-bottle case) and at $499.85. These are asking prices, not sales. One merchant also offered magnums, which are not comparable to a single bottle.

Leaving the classification

The 2015 belongs to the last decade of Angelus labels to carry the Premier Grand Cru Classe A rank. In early January 2022 the estate announced that it was withdrawing its candidacy from the 2022 Saint-Emilion classification, following Cheval Blanc and Ausone. Its statement said the classification had become 'a vehicle for antagonism and instability,' pointed to legal challenges in 2006, 2012 and 2022, and cited a recent court decision that had fined Hubert de Bouard over his participation in the national wine appellations committee.

Stephanie de Bouard-Rivoal, as president, said the family's attachment to the region remained intact and that Angelus would keep promoting Saint-Emilion around the world. From the 2022 vintage, Angelus labels no longer state the classification, Leve notes. The estate was also the subject of a 2018 documentary series, Wine Masters.

The numbers

Vineyard

39 ha with 27 ha classified for the grand vin (one critic, who also gives 42 ha); 23.4 ha (another reference)

Plantings

About 50% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Franc, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon (one critic); 51/47/2 (another reference)

Parcels

54

Vine density

6,500 to 8,000 vines per hectare

Typical production

About 8,500 cases of the grand vin (one critic); about 10,000 (another reference)

2015 blend

62% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Franc

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider (2026)

99

The Wine Advocate

97

Jeb Dunnuck

97+

Wine Enthusiast

97

Wine Spectator (James Molesworth)

96

Vinous (Antonio Galloni)

95+

The Wine Independent

98

Timeline

1. 1544

   The de Bouard family is recorded in Bordeaux, according to family archives.

2. 1910

   Maurice de Bouard de Laforest inherits the Domaine de Mazerat in Saint-Emilion.

3. 1922

   Elisabeth Bouchet buys the Clos de L'Angelus vines.

4. 1976

   Hubert de Bouard joins the family estate after studying under Emile Peynaud.

5. 1980

   Aging in new oak begins, per one reference.

6. 1987

   The second wine, Carillon d'Angelus, debuts.

7. 1990

   L'Angelus becomes Angelus, per one reference.

8. 1996

   Angelus is promoted to Premier Grand Cru Classe B.

9. 2007

   A third wine, No. 3 d'Angelus, is introduced.

10. Jun 2012

    Stephanie de Bouard-Rivoal is named executive manager.

11. Sep 6, 2012

    Angelus is promoted to Premier Grand Cru Classe A.

12. 2014

    A full renovation of cellars, chateau and bell tower is completed.

13. Sep 22, 2015

    Merlot picking for the 2015 begins; Cabernet Franc follows from October 8.

14. Oct 14, 2015

    Harvest of the 2015 ends, per two critics.

15. Apr 4, 2016

    The estate publishes its 2015 en primeur report, 'The Magnifique.'

16. 2018

    The vineyard moves to organic farming (certified 2021).

17. Jan 2022

    Angelus withdraws from the 2022 Saint-Emilion classification.

18. Mar 15, 2026

    Jeff Leve tastes the 2015 and scores it 99.

The world in 2015

• Jan 7, 2015

  Gunmen attack the Paris offices of the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, killing 12.

• Apr 25, 2015

  A magnitude 7.8 earthquake strikes Nepal.

• Jul 14, 2015

  NASA's New Horizons flies past Pluto, the first spacecraft to visit it.

• Jul 20, 2015

  Cuba and the United States restore full diplomatic relations.

• Sep 18, 2015

  Volkswagen is accused of rigging diesel emissions tests.

• Dec 12, 2015

  A global climate pact is agreed at the COP 21 summit in Paris.

Price record

This is an asking price, not a sale. It is what a seller wanted on the date shown. Asking prices often sit above what buyers pay, but an ask is not a ceiling: a sale can land on either side of it. It is not a value.

By reference price, Chateau Angelus 2015 is number 70 of 100 in the wine entries of the FLOAT 100. 12 of those 100 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (55 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.

Did you know

• Angelus is named for the Angelus bells that could be heard from three churches across its vineyard.
• Hubert de Bouard dropped the 'L'' from L'Angelus so the wine would appear first in alphabetical lists.
• Cabernet Franc's old Bordeaux name, Bouchet, was also the maiden name of the woman who bought the original Clos de L'Angelus.
• To celebrate its 2012 promotion, Angelus bottled the 2012 in a black bottle with gold lettering instead of a paper label.
• The estate's bell tower carillon can play a visitor's national anthem at the push of a button.
• In China, Angelus is known as 'the golden bell.'
• Angelus released its 2018 at exactly the same opening price as the 2015: 252 euros a bottle.