Chateau Lafleur, Pomerol 2017

I tasted many superb 2017s, but only a few that are viscerally thrilling and emotional. The 2017 Lafleur is one of a handful of wines that ascends into the stratosphere. Rich and exotically beautiful, the 2017 possesses off-the-charts intensity, tremendous aromatic depth and an impossibly long finish. A rush of dark plum, licorice, leather and mocha leaves the last impression in a wine I can only describe as: eternal. The 2017 spent about nine months in oak, 30% new. It is a towering achievement from the Guinaudeau family and their trusted associate, Omri Ram. If you can find it, buy it. And please invite me over sometime to share it with you!

OMG. What a glorious wine on the nose with aromas of blackberries, black licorice, ink and blood-oranges. Full-bodied, tight and powerful with compact tannins that cascade across the palate, giving this incredible structure and length that makes it seem to go on for ever. Titanium and graphite flavors. Super length. Half merlot and half cabernet franc. Try after 2025.

Lafleur 2017 is a blend of 51% Merlot and 49% Cabernet Franc and has a medium to deep garnet-purple color. It is very closed to begin with, slowly unfurling to reveal the most gorgeous floral notes of roses, lavender, star anise, and charcuterie with a waft of crushed rocks. The full-bodied palate knocks your socks off with the most beautiful, slow-releasing layers in the mouth, framed by super-plush tannins and just enough freshness, finishing with incredible length and spiciness.

After working tirelessly protecting their vineyards during the spring frosts, the team at Chateau Lafleur was rewarded with a normal production of their 2017 Chateau Lafleur, as well as one of the wines of the vintage. Deep purple-hued with a stunning nose of blackcurrants, black raspberries, chocolate, tobacco, and ground herbs, this beauty hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a deep, layered mid-palate, and incredible length. It shows the more classic, straight style of the vintage yet has brilliant concentration, awesome tannins, and will last for 30-40 years.

The 2017 Lafleur is very deep, almost opaque in colour. This has a very intense bouquet that clearly shrugs of any risk of frost to produce copious black fruit laced with white pepper, clove, truffle and crushed stone. It actually seems to close in a little with aeration instead of opening up. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, very fresh and certainly very mineral-driven. A pixelated but "serious" finish suggests as usual, this is a long-term Pomerol. Baptiste Guinaudeau has overseen one of the wines of the vintage.

The more gravelly soils of Lafleur have responded beautifully this year, expressing a real creaminess and density to the black fruits. There's a clear Cabernet Franc edge to the nose and to the attack on the palate, with a corresponding austerity and tightness to the tannins and a slightly chewy finish. There's a sense of momentum as the acidity rises through the palate, and it certainly has some of the power and sense of confident elegance of the 2016 vintage here. They avoided most of the frost damage here, and so were able to harvest the Merlots before the rain, between 8-12 September, and waited until 28-29 September for the Cabernets.