French REDs
FRANCE
Burgundy
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Winemaker’s Notes
Deep and intense ruby red in color, this wine offers aromas of black fruits on the nose. The notes of blackberry or blueberry are followed by licorice and cocoa. On the palate, one find sices on an elegant an refined toast. The supple and dense tannins go along with the fruits, in a long finish.
Blend: Pinot Noir
Rating: 91 points James Suckling
Gevrey-Chambertin
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Domaine Camu Fréres
Tasting Notes
Cherry ruby color, intense, clear and bright. Fresh and pleasant nose with aromas of red fruits, such as raspberry and cherry.
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Winemaker’s Notes
Dark ruby colour with purple highlights. The nose is very open, with notes of small black fruit and vanilla on a finely woody background. Fresh on the palate, supple and round. A lively and structured wine, with tannins that are present but coated.
Rating: 91 points James Suckling
Burgundy
Bordeaux
Rive Droite (right River bank of the Dordogne)
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Winemaker’s Notes
This 2019 vintage, made while the estate was undergoing conversion to organic-farming status, turned out to be easier to manage than the 2018, which was a vintage that ended up superbly but which caused worries and tensions. In this vintage, the Merlot has given our wine an opulent texture and succulent fruit, while our Cabernet Franc has brought freshness and tension. We chose to vinify with delicate extractions in order to preserve the brightness of the wine’s character and the purity of its fruit. The barrel-ageing process is ongoing, and the wine seems to be absorbing the tannins of the oak barrels without losing any of its bright fruit character or its balance. It possesses the depth, balance, tension and energy to be a vintage of great complexity and have an aging potential worthy of the greatest years.
Tasting Notes (James Suckling)
Redcurrants, sweet tobacco and flowers with some sandalwood. Very perfumed and floral. So pure. Full-bodied, yet so refined and layered, with a soft, compact palate and a crushed-velvet mouth-feel. Poised fruit at the end, together with fresh, rare wood and a light chocolate undertone to the aftertaste.
Blend: 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc
Ratings: 98 points Jeb Dunnuck, James Suckling, 97 points Decanter, 96 points Wine Advocate
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Tasting Notes
Red ruby color. The nose is marked by notes of raspberry and crisp strawberries and a touch of black current, violet and grey pepper. On the palate we find a beautiful balance and definition of juisces, with tension and straightness. The tannins are fine and discrete.
Saint-Émilion
Rive Gauche (Left River bank of the Gironde)
Pauillac, Saint-Julien, Margaux
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Winemaker’s Notes
The wine is a crimson-hued garnet red. Elegant and refined, the nose exudes floral aromas, going on with airing to develop notes of blackcurrant and licorice root. The full and smooth attack reveals an alluring and complex array of flavors in which ripe fruit is magnificently set off by notes of toasted cereals and violet. The mid-palate is underpinned by high-quality close-knit and creamy tannins, leading into a saline and slightly minty finish which lingers on hints of chocolates.
Blend: 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot
Ratings: 96 points Wine Enthusiast, 95 points Decanter, James Suckling, Wine Advocate
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#3 Wine Enthusiast Top 100 of 2008
Winemaker’s Notes
The potential of the vintage was already clear, even before the first fermentations were finished. Lynch-Bages 2005 was aged in 80% new oak which is the most they had ever used, feeling it necessary to cloak the exceptional fruit and powerful tannins.
Blend: 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot
Ratings: 96 points James Suckling, Wine Enthusiast, Wine & Spirits, Wine Spectator
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Winemaker’s Notes
Intense and deep, Itxassou cherry appearance. The nose is seductive and balanced. Lovely freshness, floral touches, jammy black fruit, toasted and vanilla notes. Well rounded on the palate. Beautiful aromatic palette combining red and black fruit, oaky notes, toast. The tannins are polished and classy, indulgent finish with very good length.
Blend: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46% Merlot Noir, 4% Petit Verdot
Ratings: 96 points Wine Enthusiast, 94 points Decanter, Jeb Dunnuck, James Suckling
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Winemaker’s Notes
This Classified Growth in 1855 is the first label of Château Giscours. It is of great finesse and elegance. Delicacy and power are combined in this flask to bring you the elegance expected of a great Margaux wine. The aging potential of this great wine is between 8 and 20 years or even more for the most exceptional vintages.
Tasting Notes (Wine Spectator)
Polished and rounded in feel, with a solid core of plum and blackberry compote flavors, lined with light hints of charcoal, tobacco and violet. Nice perfumy tobacco and warm tar notes show on the finish. Very well-integrated, making this approachable now, but there’s no rush. Best from 2020 through 2035.
Blend: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot
Ratings: 97 points Wine Enthusiast, 96 points James Suckling, 95 points Vinous, 94 points Wine Advocate, 93 points Wine Spectator, 92 points Decanter
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Winemaker’s Notes
The 2019 vintage is alluring because of its discreet elegance. It is as if the winemaker sensed the appeal of revealing its photo in black and white while leaving a tantalizing graininess. It emits an aura of mystery, a veil of modesty that creates a gentle and cocooning atmosphere that accounts for its charm. The fruit seems to develop smoothly on the palate before reaching an uplifting finale. It has a lot of class. Vibrancy, too. Aromas of morello cherry, iris and rosemary. The fresh fig confers an aromatic hint that seems to last for ever and it has the texture of all great Margaux wines, between power and sophistication. A great Rauzan.
Blend: 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35.5% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot, 0.5% Cabernet Franc
Ratings: 97 points Jeb Dunnuck, 96 points James Suckling, Wine Advocate, 95 points Decanter, 93 points Vinous, Wine Spectator
Rive Gauche (Left River bank of the Garonne)
Pessac-Léognan, Graves
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Tasting Notes James Suckling
Very polished and poised with an immensely powerful core of tannin that drives incredible length on the palate. Fruits are deep in the dark-berry spectrum, encapsulating a terrific sense of freshness through the finish. Great wine.
Blend: 44% Cabernet Franc, 32% Merlot, 24% Cabernet Sauvignon
Ratings: 97 points James Suckling, 96 points Jeb Dunnuck, 95 points Wine Spectator, 94 points Wine Advocate
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Tasting Notes (James Suckling)
Lots of blueberry, hot-stone, slate and walnut aromas. Terracotta, too. Iodine. Full-bodied, round and dense with layers of fine tannins. Lovely depth and intensity. Extremely long and focused. Needs three or four years of bottle age just to start. Try after 2024.
Blend: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot
Ratings: 96 points James Suckling, 95 points Jeb Dunnuck, 94 points Decanter
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Tasting Notes
Elegant, medium-bodied, soft, polished, plum and cherry filled wine with touches of chocolate and smoke with a core of red pit fruits and an herbaceous, earth and olive accented, red berry finish.
Blend: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Merlot
Côtes du Rhône
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Domaine de la Chartreuse
Tasting Notes:
A deep garnet red color. Complex and elegant with red fruit confitured notes and spicy aromas. Wide and rich, the palate offers roasted and cacao notes where silky tannins favor a long persistence.
Blend: Cinsault, Counoise, Grenache Noir, Mourvèdre, Muscardin, Piquepoul Noir, Syrah, Terret Noir, Vaccarèse
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Tasting Notes
Offers a complex aromatic profile, combining notes of blackberries, raspberries, licorice, and Provençal herbs with a subtle hint of leather. Each sip reveals new layers of these delightful aromas, creating a truly immersive experience. On the palate, this wine is rich and powerful, showcasing velvety tannins and a deep, concentrated flavor profile. Its long, elegant finish is a testament to the impeccable craftsmanship and unique terroir.
Blend: Cinsault, Counoise, Grenache Noir, Mourvèdre, Muscardin, Piquepoul Noir, Syrah, Terret Noir, Vaccarèse
