Organic Wines

Release date: 10/6/2024

Distinctive as ever, right at the top of what Pessac Léognan Blanc can deliver. Structured, fleshy white peach and pear, waves of salted cracker and sage, creamy texture, great length, just aDistinctive as ever, right at the top of what Pessac Léognan Blanc can deliver. Structured, fleshy white peach and pear, waves of salted cracker and sage, creamy texture, great length, just a brilliant wine. A buy. Drinking range: 2025 - 2038 Rating: 98 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (May 2024)

Release date: 10/6/2024

As usual a blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Semillon. This seems more reticent on the nose than Les Hauts, with powdered chalk, green pear and orange peel, the Semillon dampening down theAs usual a blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Semillon. This seems more reticent on the nose than Les Hauts, with powdered chalk, green pear and orange peel, the Semillon dampening down the expression a little I think. Nevertheless it shows beautiful texture and presence through the palate, with supple texture, finely veined phenolics and a fresh core of acidity. This will, I suspect, need some time to open up, through the élevage or in bottle, but it should be very good when it gets there. The alcohol is around 14%. Rating: 91-93 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 3/6/2024

Wafting from the glass with pure aromas of cherries, berries, plums and potpourri, the 2023 Alter Ego de Palmer is medium to full-bodied, bright and vibrant, with a vigorous core of fruit framed byWafting from the glass with pure aromas of cherries, berries, plums and potpourri, the 2023 Alter Ego de Palmer is medium to full-bodied, bright and vibrant, with a vigorous core of fruit framed by supple tannins. It's a blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot. Rating: 92-94 William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (Apr 2024)

Release date: 15/5/2024

The 2023 Ausone was picked September 14 to 30 and matured for a planned 20 months. It has a wonderful bouquet that is very floral in style and perfectly controlled, perhaps more refined than the 2022The 2023 Ausone was picked September 14 to 30 and matured for a planned 20 months. It has a wonderful bouquet that is very floral in style and perfectly controlled, perhaps more refined than the 2022 (which incidentally had a degree more in alcohol). The palate is medium-bodied with a silky smooth entry, finely tuned with impressive mineralité. It just gently "rolls out" on the languorous finish. This is a more understated Ausone compared to recent vintages, but it exudes sophistication and could easily surpass the Vauthiers' 2022. Drinking range: 2028 - 2060 Rating: 96-98 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 21/5/2024

This has very fresh, lively and almost al-dente fruit. It’s mouthwatering and juicy. Medium-to full-bodied, refined and seamless. Long, with a firm backbone of tannins that are very fine andThis has very fresh, lively and almost al-dente fruit. It’s mouthwatering and juicy. Medium-to full-bodied, refined and seamless. Long, with a firm backbone of tannins that are very fine and polished. Crunchy and structured. Chewy at the end. 92% cabernet sauvignon and 8% merlot. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Rating: 95-96 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 21/5/2024

This is one of the best Ferrieres for years, with waves of blackberry, cassis, fennel, anis, liqourice root, all sweet and pure and intense, with velvety tannins. Great stuff. 40hl/h yield, 3.79ph,This is one of the best Ferrieres for years, with waves of blackberry, cassis, fennel, anis, liqourice root, all sweet and pure and intense, with velvety tannins. Great stuff. 40hl/h yield, 3.79ph, harvest Septemboer 13 to october 2, highest yields for for 12 years, 40% new oak for ageing overall, along with concrete eggs, touch of amphoras. Drinking range: 2030 - 2044 Rating: 92 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (May 2024)

Release date: 21/5/2024

The 2023 Haut-Bages Libéral was picked at 53hL/ha between September 12 and 30, matured for 16 months in 40% new oak. The nose was quite backward when I tasted it, though Claire Villars-LurtonThe 2023 Haut-Bages Libéral was picked at 53hL/ha between September 12 and 30, matured for 16 months in 40% new oak. The nose was quite backward when I tasted it, though Claire Villars-Lurton commented that it had just closed down the week that I visited. It will be more open once in bottle. The palate is more indicative: clean, fresh, linear and nicely focused, with more grip than the Ferrière. Touches of graphite linger on the finish. This is very classically styled, and there is nothing wrong with that–a wine for Pauillac purists and those seeking wines with less sulfites. Drinking range: 2028 - 2046 Rating: 92-94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 24/5/2024

This is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, picked at a yield of 42 hl/ha, a good result on these organic and biodynamic vineyards. Plenty of sweet fruit character on the nose, blackberry,This is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, picked at a yield of 42 hl/ha, a good result on these organic and biodynamic vineyards. Plenty of sweet fruit character on the nose, blackberry, blackcurrants, roses and violets, very pure and expressive, and clearly leading with well-defined and floral fruit. The palate shows the same charm, with good fruit here combined with more savoury nuances, supple dark fruits wrapped in coffee bean and toast, underneath which there hides a beautiful core of ripe and nicely knit tannins, working within rather than against the wine. This is another fine vintage from the team at La Dauphine. Rating: 92-94 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 21/5/2024

Sappy and enticing ruby red fruit character, black pepper spice, fragrant cumin, good uplift through the palate. 25hl/h yield, impacted not by frost or midlew but by the heat in September on theSappy and enticing ruby red fruit character, black pepper spice, fragrant cumin, good uplift through the palate. 25hl/h yield, impacted not by frost or midlew but by the heat in September on the young vines, 3.6ph. Harvest September 13 to October 2. Drinking range: 2027 - 2038 Rating: 89 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (May 2024)

Release date: 3/5/2024

The 2023 La Lagune is a serious wine, but it is also quite backward. Dark red cherry, plum, spice, leather and dried herbs open with some coaxing. The 2023 is going to need time to come together. ItsThe 2023 La Lagune is a serious wine, but it is also quite backward. Dark red cherry, plum, spice, leather and dried herbs open with some coaxing. The 2023 is going to need time to come together. Its aromatic intensity and overall persistence suggest it has a bright future. Tasted two times. Drinking range: 2028 - 2048 Rating: 92-94 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 15/5/2024

Another beautiful wine from this perpetually improving property, the 2023 Château Mangot delivers aromas of blackberries and mulberries mingled with hints of licorice, pencil shavings, bay leaf andAnother beautiful wine from this perpetually improving property, the 2023 Château Mangot delivers aromas of blackberries and mulberries mingled with hints of licorice, pencil shavings, bay leaf and violets. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with a seamless, complete profile and impressive mid-palate density, it's a blend of 65% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon with élevage combining, as usual, new oak, used barriques, foudre and amphorae. The style emphasizes precision and purity of fruit without any obtrusive winemaking signatures. On a qualitative roll, Mangot is one of the best values in contemporary Bordeaux, and the 2023 vintage is another strong effort. Rating: 92-94 William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (Apr 2024)

Release date: 3/6/2024

Director Thomas Duroux and his team elected to harvest late in pursuit of full maturity, beginning with the Merlot on September 11 and finishing the Cabernet Sauvignon on October 5 to produce aDirector Thomas Duroux and his team elected to harvest late in pursuit of full maturity, beginning with the Merlot on September 11 and finishing the Cabernet Sauvignon on October 5 to produce a beautiful 2023 Palmer, redolent of cherries, wild berries, rose petals and violets. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot, it's medium to full-bodied, plush and enveloping, with a cool core of fruit, succulent acids, ultra-refined tannins and a seamless, complete profile. Rating: 96-97 William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (Apr 2024)

Release date: 30/4/2024

This is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, with picking from September 7th for the Merlot, followed by Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot on the 20thThis is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, with picking from September 7th for the Merlot, followed by Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot on the 20th and Cs on the 28th. No declaration on the yield here, Alfred Tesseron choosing to keep this figure to his chest, which only makes me wonder if the vines really suffered with the mildew here. There is no second wine here, although Alfred tells me some (volume not disclosed) was sold off in bulk. A sample on which the cork was popped as I arrived, before Alfred showed off his new bottle, 300 g lighter (starting with the 2022 vintage in fact). The 2023 Pontet-Canet starts with a nose of dark fruits, certainly in a pointed style, also a little high-toned and dusty; the élevage in those cement amphorae coming through? It carries the sinewy and juicy style of the vintage on the start of the palate, with a modest midpalate, restrained and fresh, with a rich undercurrent of dense, ripe and taut tannins. Draped over this are the smoked and high-toned fruits of the vintage, before it finishes with a sense of harmony, with a powdery, tobacco-infused grip. Very much a wine in the style of the vintage, with plenty of ripe tannic grip evident, the lighter texture of 2023 perhaps allowing it to show through. The alcohol this year is about 13.5%. Rating: 92-94 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 10/6/2024

The 2023 Smith Haut Lafitte is a brilliant wine, revealing a complex, elegantly oaky bouquet of dark wild berries, mulberries, blueberries, flowers and spices. Medium to full-bodied, seamless andThe 2023 Smith Haut Lafitte is a brilliant wine, revealing a complex, elegantly oaky bouquet of dark wild berries, mulberries, blueberries, flowers and spices. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and rich, it has a fleshy core of fruit with good concentration and refined, structured tannins that segues into a long, penetrating and mineral finish. Crafted with an unprecedented majority of Cabernet Sauvignon—due to mildew affecting the Merlot—this Smith Haut Lafitte highlights a distinctly Cabernet-driven texture that authentically reflects its terroir despite a slightly more structured character. This blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, matured in 60% new oak barrels, represents one-third of the entire crop. Drinking range: 2025 - 2050 Rating: 94-96 Yohan Castaing, www.robertparker.com (Apr 2024)

Release date: 10/6/2024

Structured and pretty serious Petit SHL, focusing on blue and black fuits, good structure and tension, showcases the quality of this year's Cabernet Sauvignon, highlighting the nuance and inkyStructured and pretty serious Petit SHL, focusing on blue and black fuits, good structure and tension, showcases the quality of this year's Cabernet Sauvignon, highlighting the nuance and inky character of the grape in 2023, harvest September 8 to October 5. Drinking range: 2027 - 2038 Rating: 93 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (May 2024)