2020 - Lafleur, Pomerol

One of the wines of the vintage, but likely to prove slower evolving and more introverted than its 2019 counterpart, the 2020 Lafleur unwinds in the glass with aromas of cherries, raspberries, kirsch, black truffle, orange zest and vine smoke. Full-bodied, layered and multidimensional, it's deep and concentrated, with a tightly wound core of fruit framed by rich, powdery tannins, concluding with a long, saline finish. This is another magical bottle from an estate that just seems to do everything right.

The 2020 Lafleur is a blend of 50% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple in color, it needs lots and lots of patient swirling to coax out a slowly emerging perfume of kirsch, wild blueberries, juicy black plums, and lilacs, followed by wafts of tar, crushed rocks, Sichuan pepper, and wood smoke. The full-bodied black, blue, and red berry flavors grow in the mouth, allowing earth and mineral nuances to emerge, textured by velvety tannins and seamless freshness, finishing with epically long-lasting stone and licorice-laced flavors. This will need at least 10-15 years in bottle to reveal its cards, and personally I think it's holding onto a full house.

The 2020 vintage was less of a shock perhaps for Lafleur than many other estates - they travel less than many estates, and already spend much of their time in the vines. Stunning texture, knitted down but rippling with silk and velvet, opening up to show violet, cherry, mandarin, cocoa bean, black truffle, mint, stretches out langoriously, with pulses of electricity and points of energy, tension and sinewy tannins. Showcases an oyster shell salinity that don't usually associate with a solar vintage. They do such a great job here of illuminating individual flavours, of bringing definition to the overall palate, and this is a superb Lafleur. Hard to fault. Winemaker Baptiste Guineaudeau.

The 2020 Lafleur lies in marked contrast to the 2019. This is far less expressive and, as I remarked last year, shows a little more reduction. You can immediately tell this is a very serious, almost stentorian Lafleur, but it is refusing to come out and play. The palate is quintessentially Lafleur, a bit reserved and moody with quite hefty tannins, perhaps not as finessed as the 2019. Stylistically it harks back to the 2000 and as such, demands at least another decade in bottle. (Perhaps the larger format compounds its backward nature.) Patience is required. Tasted from ex-château magnum at Kate & Kon's 40-Year vertical in Austria.

Tasted blind. Deepest crimson. Nose seems a touch rubbery – reduction? Oaky and dark on the palate. A bit severe. Powerful tannins but they are layered rather than bulky. Needs air. After some time in the glass, this showed a more mineral side and less reduction. But still seems a bit tongue-tied. (JH)