Château Laroze 2021

Open, with spicy aromas, red fruit, conifer wood. Creamy attack, then tighter, slightly powdery tannins, balsamic, slightly drying finish, good length. Needs some aging.

Heady, fragranced and ripe notes on the nose. Sour and slightly sweet initially, a burst of really quite zingy, almost unripe raspberries and strawberries before the fruit fades into some austere touches around the mouth. Doesn’t quite sustain the fun fruitiness and feels just a touch pushed and dry towards the finish. A shame as I loved this En Primeur.

The 2021 Laroze has a very commendable, well-defined bouquet with scents of black cherries, iodine and violets, the oak very well integrated. You would imagine this coming from a much more benevolent growing season. The palate is medium-bodied with a gentle grip on the entry, more-so than its peers. It's quite tangy with a briny note toward the finish that lends complexity. Bravo—a great success in the context of the vintage.

Flowers, espresso, licorice, cocoa and black cherries pop into the perfume. The palate is medium-bodied, creamy, fresh and sweet, with energetic red fruits and chocolate on the finish. Drink from 2024-2036.

Dark garnet, a tinge of purple at the rim. Delicate tobacco and herbal savouriness underpin red cherry fruit. Lean red-berry fruit, leafy texture, a little coarse and rather short.

Red and black plums, chocolate, leather, and tobacco all emerge from the 2021 Château Laroze, a medium-bodied, enjoyable, foursquare effort that lacks a touch of elegance yet brings good fruit and texture.

Sweet blackberry meets sour cherry, giving a textural push and pull that elevates this. High acidities on the finish bring juice but also some bitter notes. Has elegance for medium term drinking. 55% new, 35% in vats, 10% amphora. 37ha on clay loam slopes, owned by the Meslin family owners, Jean Philippe Fort and Hubert de Bouard consultants.

A blend of 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Laroze has a medium to deep garnet-purple color. It starts off with scents of cedar and rose oil, giving way to a core of juicy blackberries, Morello cherries, and underbrush. The medium-bodied palate is filled with black and red berry layers, supported by grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing on a woody note.

Laroze 2021 shows the filigree character we know it for. It has never banked on exuberance, and 2021 certainly doesn’t change that. Creamy and with good density, the wine has fine-grained tannins. They provide vigor and power but, given their austerity, they need to soften. A Laroze to follow as it evolves.

Beautiful deep, dark red. Moderately intense nose with fresh, floral fruit. Delicate on the attack, very aromatic mid-palate, with a supple, juicy body; the wine unfolds with fragrance, finishing fairly long with fine-grained texture. It's very good.