Larcis Ducasse 2023 (1.5L)

96-97 JS / 95-97+ JD / 94-96 VM / 94-96 WI / 95 JA / 95 DE / 93-95 WA

#6 Jeb Dunnuck Top 25 2023 Bordeaux En Primeur

This is really classic in character, with a fine tannin structure and medium body. It starts slowly and then accelerates quickly into intense black cherries, currants and a salty note. Savory and subtle. 86% merlot and 14% cabernet franc. - James Suckling

Another smoking effort in the vintage, the 2023 Château Larcis Ducasse has a medium to full-bodied, plush, sexy style as well as awesome aromatics of red and black fruits, smoked tobacco, chocolate, and spice. It brings way more depth and richness than most in the vintage, and it has ripe, polished tannins and a great finish. I was able to taste this beauty multiple times, and it never failed to impress. The blend is 86% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc, from the Côte Pavie hillside just outside of Saint-Emilion, and it’s currently resting in 50% new oak, with 40% in once-used barrels and 10% in foudre. - Jeb Dunnuck

The 2023 Larcis Ducasse is elegant, powerful and wonderfully expressive. In other words, classic Larcis. Plum, blood orange, spice, menthol, mocha and gravel infuse the 2023 with layers of dimension that only grow with time in the glass. This will need some time to shed its considerable baby fat. Superb. Tasted four times. -- Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2023 Larcis Ducasse delivers an initial burst of pure, ripe blueberries and crushed blackberries before opening out to hints of fragrant soil, rose oil, black truffle, and a beguiling waft of preserved mandarin peel. The medium to full-bodied palate is tightly wound like a spring, revealing black fruit, floral, and mineral nuances with a taut structure of firm fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing very long and fantastically layered. This is stunning. - Lisa Perotti-Brown, Wine Independent

Excellent quality, this is clearly going to age extremely, has depth, intensity and sculpted tannins, fine grained and sappy. Sweet character to the brambled damson and black cherry fruit, sage, rosemary, lavender, a great benchmark wine as ever, with salinity and grip. Tasted three times, once at the estate with owner Jacques-Olivier Gratiot. 43hl/ha yield, Nicolas Thienpont and David Suire celebrating their 22nd vintage together at the estate. 3.55ph, 50% in new barrels for ageing. - Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

Vibrant colour. Dark aromatics, something quite alluring about the nose - chocolate, salty stones, blackcurrants. Rich and full, but so smooth, like a thick silk, it coats the palate but so effortlessly, all while having real grip to the mineral-edged tannins. This is packing a lot of power, but keeps a cool edge with a vein of graphite and liquorice minerality. Quite a serious take, this is straight and focussed, very well defined, but not so expansive. I love the hints of sweet and cool blueberries that just lift the expression, dotted with cool but spiced tobacco and clove. A little constricted, but there’s lots to like, and feels a good combination of a hot and cool vintage. 3.55pH. Ageing 45% in 225l barrels, 45% in 500l barrels and 10 foudres. A yield of 432hl/ha - Georgina Hindle, Decanter

Harvested between September 14 and 25, the 2023 Larcis Ducasse offers up aromas of dark berries, preserved plums, orange confit, vine smoke, licorice and spices. Medium to full-bodied, layered and fleshy, with a sweet core of fruit framed by ripe, powdery tannins, it's succulent, suave and polished, concluding a mouthwateringly mineral finish. It's a blend of 86% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc- Wine Advocate, William Kelley