This Week's Must-Try Wines from Vinous
Château La Violette
Pomerol Red Bordeaux Blend 2015
The 2015 La Violette has a very comely bouquet with red berry fruit, leather, sage and black truffle
scents that are very well defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, a fine bead of acidity, and gentle grip. A rounded finish belies that
backbone. What a superb Pomerol - very convincing, modern in style, sleek and quite penetrating. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château La Mission Haut-Brion
Pessac-Léognan Red Bordeaux Blend 2015
The 2015 La Mission Haut-Brion is blessed with an outstanding bouquet of brilliantly focused and delineated black fruit laced with graphite and cedar - pure class. The medium-bodied, harmonious palate delivers fine-grained tannin and impressive
depth. There is a slight savory element (just like the Haut-Brion) that infuses the middle, and brown spices and sage linger on the finish. This is a profound La Mission Haut-Brion that dares surpass Haut-Brion on this showing. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château Canon
Saint-Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2015
The 2015 Canon has a tightly wound bouquet with mineral rich black fruit, raspberry coulis, rose
petal and desiccated orange peel. It takes time to come together, but it does. The palate is well defined, very focused with fine minerality. This is discreet but beautifully balanced, clean and precise with a sense of energy and precision on the finish. It is less showy than its peers at the moment, which
explains why I am more parsimonious with my score. Yet the potential is locked inside this wine and it will aspire toward perfection with a decade in bottle.Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château Coutet
Sauternes-Barsac Sémillon Blend 2015
The 2015 Coutet is a little reduced on the nose and lacks the flair of some of its peers. Pinched at
the moment - maybe going through a sulky phase?The palate is well balanced and very harmonious, viscous in texture with perfectly matched acidity and fine delineation and precision toward the finish. Once the bouquet awakens this should be a seriously fine Barsac/Sauternes. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande
Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend
The 2015 Pichon Lalande has a sophisticated bouquet of blackberry, pencil shavings, black pepper and discreet touches of wild mint, all beautifully defined and focused. There is some quality Cabernet here. The palate is medium-bodied with
fine-grained tannin, superb acidity, gentle grip and satisfying tension toward the fresh, vivid finish. One of the best Pauillacs of 2015, this is a magnificent wine from Nicolas Glumineau and his team. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château Doisy-Daëne
Sauternes Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend 2015
The 2015 Doisy-Daëne
has a very refined bouquet, extremely pure with honey, white flowers, touches of quince and beeswax. This is classy, refined and sophisticated. The palate is very well defined with a fine bead of acidity, fresh and vibrant with a precise
and quite persistent finish that is very classy. Superb. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château Le Tertre Rôteboeuf
Saint-Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2015
The 2015 Tertre-Rôteboeuf has a sumptuous, decadent and multi-layered bouquet with
billowing black cherries, blueberry, crème de cassis and violet aromas that are hedonistic and irresistible. The palate is full-bodied with a lot of extraction: chocolate-tinged black fruit, sweet and candied with veins of peppermint toward the no-holds barred finish. A powerhouse of a Saint Émilion, I was initially prudent with my score but the manner in which it coalesces in the glass is convincing. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château Lafleur
Pomerol Red Bordeaux Blend 2015
The 2015 Lafleur has a broody but intense bouquet with exquisite definition and top quality Cabernet
Franc showing through. This just has to be Lafleur! The palate is extremely well balanced with gentle grip, almost powdery in texture and demonstrating enormous depth and persistence on the finish. It is nowhere near ready but it will be a wonderful Pomerol. There is a sense of audacity here that is compelling. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
Château Pichon-Longueville Baron
Baron de Pichon-Longueville Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend
The 2015 Pichon-Baron
has an engaging, complex bouquet of blackberry, cedar, mint and graphite, demonstrating more cohesion and more conviction than its peers. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin and extremely well-judged acidity that imbues
this Pauillac with a sense of effortlessness and class lacking in some of its peers. A stunning 2015 and one of the greatest releases from the estate. Tasted
blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago
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The 2015 Pape-Clément has a fragrant bouquet with quite plush, generous but well defined red berry
fruit mixed with rose petal and incense, smoke and cigar humidor following later. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannin, crisp and focused.
A seam of graphite emerges toward the finish. This is linear and correct at the moment. This should develop into a very fine Pessac-Léognan, one full of breed and sophistication. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 5 years ago