Les Perrieres de Lafleur 2021 (750ML)

95 DE / 93-95 VM / 94 WA / 92-94 JD / 92-93 JS

Smells ripe and concentrated, blackcurrant, black cherry and plum. Tension and minerality to the fore here, this is streamlined and direct, less layered and plump but has excellent depth and density with silky smooth tannins - they have structure but so well integrated giving bite rather than chew. Floral accents give a lovely delicate framing to the flavours, elegant and refined but still so powerful. Really concentrated and intense underneath the frame - there is structure here but it’s tightly wrapped and delivered very linear at the moment. The fruit is ripe no doubt but they also have a real savoury tone with a wet stone, salty, soy, iro and iodine tang on the finish - clear markers of the terroir. Sophisticated, complex, persistent and detailed. A contemplative wine with purity - and part of the overall excellent range from Lafleur this year. Drinking Window 2026 - 2040 - GH, Decanter

The 2021 Les Perrières is the wine in the Guinaudeau family's range readers should focus on. Sure, Lafleur is epic, but it requires connections and resources to acquire. The Perrières, on the other hand, is easier to find, costs a fraction of the Grand Vin, and guess what? It is fabulous in 2021. Dense and packed, the Perrières overwhelms the senses with its captivating beauty. Dark fruit, gravel, spice, menthol and lavender infuse this virile, somber wine with tremendous nuance. I would be thrilled to own it. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

The cooler vintage has lent the 2021 Les Perrières de Lafleur an even greater sense of transparency than preceding vintages, even if this bottling has always had a remarkably pronounced site signature. Unfurling in the glass with deep aromas of raspberries, plums, Indian spices, burning embers and licorice, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with beautifully refined tannins, lively acids and an intensely mineral finish. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

A wine that was first made in 2018, the 2021 Les Perrières De Lafleur comes from pure limestone soils in Fronsac and vines that were a massale selection from Lafleur. The blend is 60% Bouchet (an old variety of Cabernet Franc) and 40% Merlot, and it offers a vivid ruby hue to go with beautiful notes of ripe cherries, cassis, chalky minerality, and white flowers. More pure, focused, and tight on the palate, it has tons of salinity and obvious minerality, terrific tannins, and a great finish. It's a beautiful wine that excels in the vintage. - Jeb Dunnuck

A creamy and spicy wine with red fruit, including cherries. It's medium-bodied with fine tannins and a fruity finish. Lovely density and focus to the wine. 62% cabernet franc and the rest merlot. - James Suckling