2021 Château Lafleur

The 2021 Lafleur was picked 17 and 24 September for the Merlot and on 2 October for the Bouchets (to give Cabernet Franc its proper name in these parts). It has a very focused bouquet with dark berry fruit, crushed rock, iris flower and just a touch of blue fruit. The palate is silky smooth on the entry with a fine bead of acidity. Beautifully-balanced, conveying palpable energy, this is cool, calm and collected on the finish, brushing off the hurdles of the growing season like water off a duck's back. Baptiste and Julie Guinaudeau have conjured not just one of the finest Pomerols of 2021, but one of the finest Bordeaux wines.

- Neal Martin (2022)

The Guinaudeau family's mantra is to "never submit to the vintage," and in 2021 that meant 10 sleepless nights of frost protection and a growing season that required quick reactions to perform the necessary treatments without neglecting the other important viticultural tasks of the year. The reward is the profound 2021 Lafleur, a brilliant blend of 52% Cabernet Franc and 48% Merlot that wafts from the glass with aromas of wild berries, violets, rose petals, vine smoke and black truffle. Full-bodied, layered and seamless, it's deep and penetrating, with superb concentration and beautifully refined structuring tannins, concluding with a long, resonant finish. A monument in the making, I wouldn't be surprised to see it transcend my bracketed score when revisited in bottle.

- William Kelley (2022)