This wine showed beautifully in my tasting. From a tiny (29 acres) jewel of a property on the hillsides of St.-Emilion, not far from the big boys of the plateau area (Ausone, Belair, etc), the 2012 is dense purple in color, with sweet black cherry and blackcurrant fruit, some crushed rock and floral notes, medium to full body, not a hard edge to be found, and a lush, well-proportioned, beautifully pure finish. This is impressive wine is clearly a sleeper of the vintage, but quantities are very small. Drink it over the next 15 years. The final blend was 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc.

The 2012 reveals an intense liqueur of wet rocks and chalk intermixed with red currant, pomegranate and raspberry fruit. Medium-bodied and elegant, it is almost Burgundian in its sense of place and terroir-driven personality. This 2012 will require some cellaring when released, and should drink well for 15 or more years. This 6.2-acre vineyard sandwiched between Belair-Monange and the now defunct Magdelaine has virtually no top soil whatsoever. It is pure, hard limestone, which is often apparent in this wine’s crushed chalk-like notes. Composed of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc and made under the guidance of consultant Hubert de Bouard, the wine hit 13% natural alcohol.