| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > Pomerol |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
This is the rarely seen second wine of Pomerol's Chateau Lafleur.
Very long and textured with blackberry, mineral and walnut character. Turns to violets. Full-bodied, very firm and silky. Love the balance and length. This is half merlot and half cabernet franc. Second wine of Lafleur. Better than the 2015?
While Lafleur is based on the gravel soils in Pomerol, Pensees de Lafleur is made from the vines on clay. The 2016 Pensees has 55% Merlot and 45% Cabernet Franc giving a deep garnet color, with a touch of purple. It delivers head-turning scents of preserved plums, boysenberries, and chocolate-covered cherries, leading to hints of crushed rocks, star anise, and fertile loam. Full-bodied, the palate delivers layer upon layer of black fruits and mineral accents, supported by ripe, rounded tannins, finishing long with loads of mineral and exotic spice sparks.
This has astonishing tannic presence for a second wine, and yet the individual strands are so soft and silky. It is more perfumed and softly fruited than Lafleur at this stage, rising in your mouth with a mouthwatering succulence on the finish. 55% Merlot and 45% Cabernet Franc from 0.7ha. 3.5pH. The biggest production volume for four years.
Drinking Window 2027 - 2040
Dark crimson. Very pure and non second-wine-like. Amazingly sophisticated. Beautiful texture. Just a little short but beautiful on the way. Cool end.
Drink 2023-2033
The second wine from this estate is also brilliant and doesn’t give much to its bigger sibling. The 2016 Pensées de Lafleur offers a gorgeous bouquet of mulberries, cassis, and damp earth that flows to a medium to full-bodied 2016 that has more than a hint of the character, elegance, and purity that the estate’s grand vin is known for. With flawless balance and an utterly seamless texture, drink this brilliant second wine any time over the coming 20-25 years. Drink 2019-2044.
The second cru, rather than the second wine of Lafleur, as it comes from a different part of the vineyard, this has the classic combination of balance, perfume, elegance and understated concentration. Silky and refined, this is Burgundy lover’s Pomerol. 2022-30
The 2016 Les Pensees de Lafleur is a blend of 55% Merlot and 45% Cabernet Franc this year, picked 30 September and 12 October and matured in around 20% new oak. It has a very crisp, tightly wound bouquet that opens wonderfully in the glass, revealing blackberry, crushed violets and iris--very nuanced. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, plenty of truffle tinged black fruit fused with pencil lead notes, seguing into a very structured and persistent finish, with a long and peppery aftertaste. "A serious Pensées..." Baptiste Guinaudeau commented. Too right.
Drink Date 2021 - 2040
Blended of 55% Merlot and 45% Cabernet Franc, the medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2016 Pensées de Lafleur opens with bold, tantalizing notes of crushed black cherries, wild blueberries and plum preserves with hints of kirsch, violets, dark chocolate and licorice with a waft of forest floor. Medium-bodied, the palate is amazingly elegant for the intensity of fruit with beautifully ripe, finely grained tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing long and layered. Drink 2021-2038.
