2019 Pensees de Lafleur

The 2019 Pensées de Lafleur is composed and focused on the nose. An old school Pomerol in the positive sense, with truffle and ash scents emerging over time. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, fine acidity, pencil lead and black pepper towards its cohesive and persistent finish. This is a class act. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.

Tasted blind. Bluer than most. Warm and gamey. Rich and sweet and beguiling on the palate with a little curranty flavour. Long. (JR)

The 2019 Pensées De Lafleur is the second wine of Château Lafleur, but instead of being a declassification, it comes from a narrow band of deeper clay soils that run diagonally through this magical vineyard. Always close to an even split of Cabernet Franc and Merlot (although I suspect there's more Cabernet Franc in this blend), it has a deeper, blacker fruited style compared to the Grand Vin, with beautiful notes of black cherries, currants, damp earth, iron, and smoked tobacco. Beautiful on the palate as well, it's medium to full-bodied, rich, nicely concentrated, and beautifully balanced on the palate, and while it might not hit the magical status of the top wine, it's a singular, beautiful wine in its own right that goes well beyond a second wine. It will keep for 20-25 years.