Château La Fleur Peyrabon 2016

This is pretty closed down. Feel the weight and swagger of the tannins; it’s a good wine but more foursquare and old school than many Pauillacs that have worked their tannins a little more silkily this year. But I like the traditional side to it — a Pauillac lovers’ Pauillac, and a value pick at this wine’s usual price point.

It is easy to find smoke, tobacco and crisp cassis here. Not a Pauillac of depth and structure; instead, you find a wine of freshness and refinement. Give this a few years in the bottle and enjoy it over the next 15 years or more.

Complex nose offering a wide aromatic palette—fruit, flowers, spices; a very elegant palate with a tight, refined texture, plenty of flavor, and perfect balance anchored in freshness. Great harmony.

The 2016 is very successful, with a graphite note that lends it fine breeding.

Garnet with violet highlights. What a rascal, what a scamp! That’s how I began to describe this wine’s bouquet. A wine lives, tells stories and, above all, evolves. La Fleur Peyrabon is at the start of adolescence and/or what we more commonly call the beginning of its beefy phase. In short, it wants to clown around, and it’s rather amusing! It’s got some serious weapons at hand: the power and complexity of the terroir. For now it shoots left and right, so you have to crawl up to it to avoid the ricochets. Being a good lad, it decides to reveal a bit of fruit to prove it can, but since it’s a little too pleased with itself it throws a dose of graphite at you, giving the impression of being drowned in the heart of a pencil sharpener. What’s more, sensing you’re starting to pin it down, it sends out flashes of reduction, some green notes, just to make you doubt. On the palate, it shows more reason. It’s even surprising, as it demonstrates it has far more control than you might expect; it’s creamy, racy, compact and deep. It has multiple resources and displays them in an orderly manner, not forgetting to rally the acidic structure that gives it the backbone it needs so it doesn’t end up being too well-behaved. I don’t want to say it too loudly, or it might get big-headed… but this young fellow will go far.

The nose is elegant and shows a lovely fine grain, subtle richness, a delicate touch, ripe fruit character and power (yet with finesse). It reveals notes of fleshy blackberry, fleshy Gariguette strawberry and, more subtly, violet, combined with hints of Sichuan pepper, licorice, toasted nuances, vanilla, and a very discreet touch of blueberry, lily, and cardamom. The palate is fruity and balanced, offering lovely finesse, fine-grained texture, delicacy, gourmandise, and a fine, zesty backbone. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of fleshy blackberry, fleshy strawberry and, more lightly, red berries, combined with fine touches of licorice, tonka bean, flowers, and very discreet hints of Timut pepper (in the background) and licorice/blond tobacco. The tannins are elegant and structuring.

Dark, intense color. Moderately aromatic nose with fresh, ripe fruit. Juicy on the attack, very fruity mid-palate, developing into a flavorful wine with good body and a slightly austere finish. Medium length.

This wine comes from a 17-acre portion of the Peyrabon estate that is in Pauillac. Bottled separately, it has a high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon that gives great richness as well as structure. This rich, ageworthy wine will likely be ready to drink from 2023.