Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2023

Once again, with great depth, multi-faceted, playful, complex; silky tannins wrap around the fruit, builds momentum, with a very long finish. Classically built.

Fragrant floral and blackcurrant notes on the nose. Just ripe fruit, on the bright side but nothing out of place, not too high-toned or too sour. It’s lacking a touch in density, but makes up for it in precision and nuance. Lots of fine, salty and spiced tannins support the pure fruit with a graphite edge that lingers on the tongue. It’s clean and focused, not so vertical or wide, but there’s finesse here no doubt. Mouthwatering and minty all the way through. Very classy and classic with fine ageing potential. Excellent quality. Ageing 75% new oak. 3.56 pH. A yield of 48 hl/ha. 55% grand vin production. 12.5% press wine.

The 2023 Grand Puy Lacoste has an understated bouquet that is beautifully defined, opening with blackberry, briar, cedar and light pencil box aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with a sapid entry, fine grip, quite linear and correct in style, in keeping with the GPL style. Fine grip on the finish with a tad more length than I noticed from barrel, this is a superb Pauillac that will require three or four years in bottle.

Full-bodied, juicy, fresh, and rich, the wine displays its blend of blackberries, tobacco leaf, cedar, cigar box and lead pencil on the nose. On the palate, the wine is vibrant, lifted, and energetic, but not overly bright, ensuring everything is in balance, with loads of chewy currants and a savory, peppery-tinged finish that lingers. The wine is a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon with 23% Merlot. Drink from 2029 to 2060.

Dark ruby, opaque core, purple reflections, delicate edge brightening. Delicate orange zest, ripe cherry, a hint of cassis, fine oak savouriness, inviting bouquet. Juicy, fresh red fruit, a structure rich in finesse, ripe, round tannins, salty-mineral, appears light-footed, lingers for a long time, a delicate style with freshness and length.

Lovely deep ruby colour, cocoa bean, cassis, bilberry, salted cracker, vanilla bean, expansive through the mid palate, a ton of slate and graphite and smoked oak on the finish. Classic, finessed, with appellation character. 75% new oak, rest one year old, around 60% of production in this 1st wine. Harvest September 11 to 28. Hubert de Boüard consultant, tasted twice.

The brilliance heralded by Lacoste-Borie is clearly echoed in Grand-Puy-Lacoste, though in a more controlled, subtler expression, with oak bringing a structuring influence, while notes of black berries and licorice open up enticing prospects enhanced by the vintage’s sunny nature. With a refreshing structure and perfectly integrated tannins, the wine stands out for its harmony, its vigor, and tannins that balance both the robust and the suave sides. It also benefits from the energetic, tonic lift of its acidity, delivering a fully achieved harmony with fine potential, whether in terms of freshness or ageing. A contemporary wine that fully embodies the estate’s cultural legacy. Being good all the time… isn’t that the definition of a great wine?

The nose is fruity, aromatic, elongated, and shows a certain maturity. It reveals notes of kirsch cherry, fairly ripe red berries and, more subtly, aromatic herbs, combined with fine hints of infusion, star anise, and a touch of pepper. The palate is fruity and offers minerality, accuracy, precision, and a certain maturity. It displays notes of morello cherry, almost roasted raspberry and, more subtly, juicy/pulpy blackberry, combined with touches of racy minerality, fine smoky hints, aromatic herbs, as well as a discreet touch of sage and sweet spices. Good length.

A textbook Pauillac, with a slightly taciturn feel to its rock-steady beam of cassis and bitter cherry fruit, allied to a bright iron spine. Flecks of savory and tobacco dart about, adding a sparkle of energy through the chiseled finish. Shows the vintage’s modest scale, but everything is in proportion. For the cellar. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2028 through 2043. 10,000 cases made.

Deep red color with purple highlights. A moderately intense nose, elegant, fruity and subtle, becoming more sophisticated with a swirl of the glass. A sense of rarity. Precise on the attack, full on the mid-palate, with a delicate blackberry flavor and a velvety texture, the wine stretches into a very aromatic finish on a hint of tannin... without tannin. An ensemble that is both refined and rich, which is very rare for such a low pH (3.55).

A blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon and 23% Merlot, the 2023 Grand-Puy-Lacoste has turned out very well, evoking aromas of cassis, dark berries, cigar wrapper and rose petals, lifted by a delicate minty nuance. Medium- to full-bodied, enveloping and seamless, it is shaped by powdery, velvety tannins and a layered mid-palate that opens onto a long, vibrant and saline finish. A classic at this address, it nonetheless stands out as a particularly fine effort and an excellent value.