Chateau La Violette 2023

Perfumed and aromatic on the nose. Cool straight away, blueberries and blue cherries, really quite fresh and minty. Quite light, perhaps missing a touch more plushness, but it’s direct and streamlined with a really long finish. Smooth tannins, well built and nicely structured. Ageing 70% new oak.

The 2023 La Violette has an ebullient bouquet, as usual, clean and pure black cherry and cassis fruit, a floral component emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with that typical lush mouthfeel, although the acidity imparts freshness. There is a veneer of dark chocolate toward the finish but, overall, it retains a sensuality that I found in barrel, and it should age well in bottle.

Dark in color, the wine is equally intense on the palate with its layers of black and red fruits, dark chocolate, black cherries, black raspberries, black plums, and chalk. There is depth, concentration, and richness with power, lift, and opulence in the mid-palate that carries through to the finish. The key to the vintage was the long hang time, with harvesting starting September 11–20. The length of the harvest is due to manual destemming. The wine was produced from 100% Merlot, 14% ABV. Drink from 2029–2050. 95–97 pts.

Deep dark ruby, opaque core, purple reflections, delicate rim brightening. Nuances of cranberry, tree resin, subtle smoky wood, green tea, semi-bitter chocolate, peppery undertones, some plum and the eponymous floral notes. Also gingerbread (from the wood). On the palate, the wine is dense in a relaxed way, well endowed with tactile minerality, and despite the round, supple body, there is also juiciness and elegance. The finish develops a distinctive saltiness.

100% Merlot, 70% new barriques. Densely interwoven bouquet, cooling cassis spice, delicate violet perfume and blueberry jelly. On the palate, complex and straightforward, with a tight-knit tannic framework, supporting verve and a well-toned body. In the concentrated, never-ending finish: blackcurrant, deep-seated terroir spice and a powdery astringency.

This is intense, with rich character—grilled coffee, blueberry—slightly heavy through the mid-palate, though it has good depth and texture, Pomerol typicity, and very much the estate’s signature. Close to the church plots in Pomerol, Vignobles Parent.

Score: 92–94. Quivering and delicate, the nose enchants with floral aromas of violet and iris, lifted by nutmeg and white pepper. Very pure, energetic fruit is balanced by a fresh, velvety texture. Still monolithic, the finish remains gourmand, brightened by a touch of acidity that awakens the palate.

A lovely, elegant and precise nose, offering bright fruit, a certain freshness, a fine sense of detail and a multi-layered character. A fine, fresh and intense texture (with great finesse). Notes of black blackberry, tobacco and, more subtly, fleshy small black berries mingle with touches of violet, lily and camphor, delicate infusion nuances, bright blueberry, as well as a hint of mocha and cardamom, a discreet touch of cornflower and an almost imperceptible, nearly Mediterranean nuance in the fruit. The palate is beautifully guided—delicate, supple, indulgent and airy (in its fleshiness)—perfectly balanced, with a lovely elongated feel, depth, a tangy acidic framework, a fine sense of detail (like a silk square) and a precise, delicate, gourmet touch. Beautiful finesse. On the palate, the wine reveals notes of juicy/fleshy blackberry, bright blackcurrant and, more lightly, bright small blue fruits, alongside touches of raspberry, vibrant/fleshy cherry, vibrant/fleshy cherry, violet, and hints of cornflower, infusion, tonka bean, a touch of roasted notes and toasted almond. The tannins are chalky, elegant and flavoursome. A discreet hint of pleasant cocoa bitterness on the finish/through the persistence.

A friendly red, with an up-front and caressing feel to its dark plum and blackberry confiture notes, all dusted with cocoa and framed with perfumed black tea on the finish. For fans of the showier style. Drink now through 2038. 322 cases made.