Short notes from Saint-Émilion 2023

Some wines tasted during my trip to Saint-Émilion in June 2023…

2016 Château Malartic-Lagravière Rouge, by the glass at Vignobles et Châteaux, 04 June 2023. Very deeply coloured. Medium-full even presence, structured with soft tightly knit tannins that exert excellent intensity and tension with fine precision.

2016 Virginie de Valandraud Blanc at Thunevin Girondins, 04 June 2023. Pale greenish. Bit of diesel fumes on the nose. Less weighty than the grand vin but still imbued with good presence of white tones. Good balance.

1994 Château Monbousquet, only €90 from the list of restaurant L’Envers du Decor, 04 June 2023. Still fairly dark. Nose of sandalwood and mahogany with a hint of menthol. Darkish velvety textures. Very good supple presence of mature dark fruits, cedar and cinnamon, displaying rustic attack with a glowing minty finish.

2020 Château Des Landes Cuvée Prestige. From the satellite region of Lussac-Saint-Émilion. Tasted during a masterclass at Maison du Vin, 05 June 2023. Clear purple. Fruit forward with a deeper core of strawberries and cherries while some enamel is discernible along with sweet cedar. Medium-full with refreshing acidity, showing controlled intensity and linearity amid a certain rusticity. Modest finish. Comprises 80% merlot, 15% cabernet sauvignon and 5% cabernet franc. Owned by Nicholas Lassagne.

2019 Château de Puisseguin Curat Gemme Rouge. From the satellite region of Puisseguin Saint-Émilion. Tasted during a masterclass at Maison du Vin, 05 June 2023. Deep crimson. Distinct nose of diesel with reductive oaky flavours but subtly shaded. Concentrated layers of darkish fruit, well-integrated with very fine intensity. Modest finish. Very successful. Comprises 65% merlot, 15% cabernet sauvignon and 20% cabernet franc aged in 50% new barrels. By Jean-François Robin.

2018 Château Guillemot. Tasted during a masterclass at Maison du Vin, 05 June 2023. Deep ruby. Shy, just a glimpse of briar and wild berries. Supple rounded medium presence of cherries, imparting subtle intensity and fresh but understated acidity. Good clarity and balance. Modest finish. From an 8-ha plot owned by Valerie Arnathau, comprising 80% merlot, 5% cabernet sauvignon and 15% cabernet franc.

2016 Château Boutisse. Saint-Émilion Grand Cru. Tasted during a masterclass at Maison du Vin, 05 June 2023. Deep purple. Fairly effusive in ripe raspberries, still imbued with some varnish. Medium weight. Fleshy with fresh supple tannins, yielding fine detail with a hint of mocha. Good length. Comprises 70% merlot, 20% cabernet sauvignon, 5% carmenere and 5% cabernet franc aged in 50% new barrels. A 21-ha estate owned by Xavier Milhade.

2015 Clos de la Cure. Saint-Émilion Grand Cru. Tasted during a masterclass at Maison du Vin, 05 June 2023. Deep garnet with a hint of bricking. Lovely perfumed aromas of red fruits and fig. Carries itself with effortless grace on the medium palate, seamlessly integrated with superb suppleness and balance. Just the right level of ripeness. Understated acidity. Modest finish. Very successful. Comprises 75% merlot and 25% cabernet franc fermented in cement vats, aged in 50% new barrels. A 7-ha estate owned by Pierre et Alexis Bouyer.

2014 Château Larmande. Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé. Tasted during a masterclass at Maison du Vin, 05 June 2023. Good colour. Roast meat and other savoury notes amid overtones of cashews and dried fruit mix. Medium-bodied. Fleshy and soft, exuding delicious charm from its gentle restraint. Modest finish. Drinking the vintage. Comprises 65% merlot, 5% cabernet sauvignon and 30% cabernet franc. By Veronique Corporandy et Olivier Brunel.

2015 Château La Mondotte. Saint-Émilion Premier Grand Cru Classé. Tasted blind during a masterclass at Maison du Vin, 05 June 2023. Very deep impenetrable purple. Restrained, reductive dark tones of austere minerals amid an exuberance of ripe wild berries, still touched with varnish. Full saturated palate of ample red fruits graced with fine acidity and well-managed understated tannins. Modest finish, just a little gamey with a herbaceous tint. Very modern style. Still primal. Comprises 80% merlot, and 20% cabernet franc aged in 100% new barrels. From a 4.5-ha plot owned by Stephan von Neipperg. I nailed it.

2005 Château Laniote. Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé. Tasted over lunch at Clos du Roy, 05 June 2023. Deep crimson. Intense savoury tones on the nose with a suggestion of heated earth, leading to a warm ripeness of wild berries accompanied by some alcoholic heat.

2006 Château de Ferrand. Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé. Tasted over lunch at Clos du Roy, 05 June 2023. Crimson hues. Savoury tones tempered by floral notes. Good attack and intensity, laced with sleek acidity. Modest finish.

2000 Château Grand Corbin-Despagne. Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé. Tasted over lunch at Clos du Roy, 05 June 2023. Evolved crimson. Tertiary glow of mature red fruits. Supple medium-full palate, open with moderate intensity. Good balance. Quite integral. Modest finish.

Champagne Bollinger Special Cuvée, pre-dinner aperitif at Château Angélus, 05 June 2023. Dull golden. Full rich creaminess overlaid with chromatic tones, imparting superb freshness and sweet intensity. Not too dry.

2017 Château de Buxy Montagny 1er Les Bassets, over lunch at La Terrasse Rouge, 06 June 2023. Golden green. Bold bouquet of green fruits, grassy elements and morning dew. Good freshness, though the medium palate is rather straightforward and rustic.

2000 Château La Dominique, over lunch at La Terrasse Rouge, 06 June 2023. Deep garnet still. Effusive in rose petals and cherries. Very soft tannins, complementing the lush expanse of fruit, yielding lovely elegant detail. Almost voluptuous in its supple intensity. Great balance and length, finishing on a note of spicy capsicum. Excellent.

2019 Château Latour-Martillac Blanc, from the list of Logis de la Cadène, 06 June 2023. Light greenish hue, delivering lithe chromatic white tones that light the palate with elegant charm. Very subtly chalked with agile density, opening up with soft contours, retaining very good definition all the way to its glowing finish.

2015 Domaine François Lamarche Vosne-Romanée Les Suchots 1er, from the list of Logis de la Cadène, 06 June 2023. Classic pinot tint of cherries and floral fragrance. Medium weight with a predominance of red fruits supported by a deeper vein of currants that eventually impart intense darkish shades laced with very fine acidity, finishing with overtones of incense.

2019 Domaine François Carillon Saint-Aubin Murgers les Dents de Chien 1er, from the list of Les Belles Perdrix, 07 June 2023. Light greenish. Effusive complexity of delicate green fruits tinged with varnish, teasing the layered palate of white tones with fleeting fullness and intensity of delicate citrus, replete with a sense of oily density. Lengthy finish of white incense.

2011 Château Cheval Blanc, comprising 53% cabernet franc and 47% merlot. Deep crimson. Early secondary development of red plums and other complex red fruits with a lovely glowing presence. The tannins are still tightly structured with fine detail and excellent precision, imbued with considerable ferrous elements that lend a distinct austerity to the mid-palate. Fairly well integrated but doesn’t quite display the depth and layering of the best years, a little “stemmy” too at the finish although the grapes are completely de-stemmed. Tasted on 06 June 2023 at the château.

2011 Château Figeac. Bright purple. Highly aromatic in cherries, raspberries and red currants. Beautifully structured with excellent presence, the tannins beginning to loosen with svelte supple intensity. Wonderfully fresh and energetic, showing great integration though the cabernet franc component is still discernibly coiled with a hint of varnish. Finished well with traces of graphite. Tasted at the château on 06 June 2023.