94 Wine Spectator
Very charming, with bright red currant and damson plum fruit, laced with a lively minerality and a lilting bergamot note. Long and silky, this is almost approachable now, but the acidity is so fine that this could be sneakily long-lived in the cellar. Tasted non-blind.—J.M.
91 Robert Parker
The 2014 Le Petit Cheval, a blend of 52% Merlot and 48% Cabernet Franc, has a crisp, tightly wound bouquet with blackberry, black olive (as per its primeur sample) and a subtle estuarine undercurrent that becomes more conspicuous with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red berry fruit intermingling with white pepper, clove and a pinch of Chinese five spice. It has moderate depth, a sense of approachability in that the tannins do not really grip the mouth, and the latter half appears appealingly smooth and harmonious. There are no rough edges here, just a touch of frisson on the saline finish. Very fine, a Saint Emilion Deuxième Vin to drink over the next decade.<br/>
16 Rene Gabriel
52 % Merlot, 48 % Cabernet Franc. Tiefes Purpur, satt in der Mitte, Granatschimmer am Rand. Eine kalter Würze zieht sich über das Bouquet hin, also erinnert er in der ersten Sekunde schon an die gute alte Cheval Zeit, viel Lakritze und dunkle Edelhölzer und bereits erste Tabaknuancen. Im Gaumen mit fleischiger Substanz, leicht sehnige Muskeln, im Finale eine gewisse Malzbitterkeit zeigend.