Farr Vintners Logo

La Mondotte 2018

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyMerlot/Cabernet Franc

This super-cuvée is made by the Canon La Gaffelière team from 4.5 hectares of 60 year old vines - 85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc. The tiny vineyard is situated near to Troplong Mondot and Tertre Roteboeuf. It burst onto the scene at the height of the garage wine boom with a monster 1996. Annual production is usually less than 1000 cases.

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by La Mondotte

Label

Tasting Notes

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 La Mondotte strolls nonchalantly out of the glass with expressive scents of plum preserves, blueberry compote and chocolate-covered cherries, followed by suggestions of candied violets, licorice, hoisin and black truffles with a waft of ground cloves. It's medium to full-bodied with seriously impressive tension and wonderfully ripe, velvety tannins supporting the generous black fruit preserves layers, finishing with amazing length and loads of panache. It will require a good 4-5 years to unlock some of its finer nuances, then drink this powerhouse over the next 25+ years. Drink 2025-2050.

97+
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (End of Mar), March 2021

Blackberry, plum, mushroom and wood undertones. It’s full-bodied with firm, ripe tannins. Savory and fleshy texture on the palate. Well balanced. Flavorful finish with length. Such polish and composure for a young wine. So classy! Try after 2026.

98
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, March 2021

Black core with narrow purple rim. Very ripe black fruit, so much so that it's got a touch of black olive. But also spice and dark chocolate. Rich and complex. Powerful and surprisingly juicy but the tannins are just a touch hard on the finish – perhaps it's the alcohol effect?
Drink 2025-2032

16.5
Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2019

Glass-staining deep purple in the glass, with a nose of sweet vanilla, char and tarry damsons. The palate is high octane and rich, with a full body and high alcohol. This is a real blockbuster of concentrated cassis, coconut and cherry cola. The tannins are balanced, ripe and chalky, and let the liquorice, menthol and raisined fruit power through to a long finish, which is warming and very smoky.

90
Farr Vintners, Farr Tasting, April 2019

The 2018 La Mondotte is another incredibly classy wine from proprietor Stefan von Neipperg and comes from a beautiful terroir situated above Pavie Decesse. A blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc brought up in 70% new French oak, it offers a seamless display of crème de cassis, crushed violets, and a liquid rock-like minerality. Full-bodied, with massive amounts of fruit, full-bodied richness, and building tannins, it’s an infant and will require 4-6 years of bottle age, but it’s a brilliant Saint-Émilion that will keep for 2-3 decades.

95/97+
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, May 2019

(75 Merlot, 25 Cabernet Franc) | 70% new oak | 14.5% alc | Harvested between 20th September and 5th October | Certified Organic As always, the fruit is densely packed, powerful and wild in this wine and in 2018 it is fiercely tannic, too. Built from sturdy ingredients, this is a muscular wine, but it is possible to see the tender fruit inside its hulking frame. The nose is super-ripe and the fruit is coulis-like with its intensity and while it is an incredibly youthful creation, the balance of all of the constituent elements is there.

18+
Matthew Jukes, MatthewJukes.com, April 2019
Read more tasting notes...

Wow. This is very dense and powerful with linear tannins and vivid acidity that run straight through the center of the wine. It’s full-bodied with great freshness. Loads of blackberry character and a salty-mineral undertone. Extremely long in the finish.

97/98
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2019
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.