The bounty of ProWein keeps pouring in...
Today I have a stunning vertical of nicely-aged Bordeaux reds direct from the Chateau's cellar with perfect provenance. The producer is nicely situated on the Left Bank in the Haut-Médoc region, backed by scores and medals that tell one half of the story.
Considering you'll know the source once the cork is pulled, there's no harm in telling you it's from the recently-elevated to Cru Bourgeois Supérieur-status property of Château Larose Perganson. We've got the exact same wine (purchased in shiners) under our label with by far the best prices available at $25/bottle.
This is a great opportunity to try one of each now with a healthy decant (still lots of youth in these bottles, and a bit of travel shock from just coming off the water) and lay the rest down to check in on over the coming years. All the wines are between 13.8% and 14% ABV and enjoy 30-50% new French oak and are typically comprised of 55-65% Cabernet Sauvignon and around 40% Merlot, often with a couple percent of Petite Verdot. This is classic, archetypal Haut-Medoc with no-expense-spared production.
My notes:
56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 44% Merlot; the youngest of the bunch is at no loss for lack of age and missing no complexity. The opening is a bit more of a fruit-forward showcase in this vertical with dark cherries, raspberry coulis, and cassis berries accented by crushed violets. The entry is the juiciest of the bunch, but not juicy per se, red-to-blue/black fruit stands in front of new leather and dried herbs accented by medium acidity and plentiful, grippy medium-grained tannins. The finish is dry and long with resonant vanilla character and cassis umami.
The 2018:
- 92-points James Suckling
- 91-points Decanter
- 16.5/20 Jancis Robinson
