2006 La Violette

Tasted at the château, the 2006 La Violette was the maiden vintage from the late Catherine Père-Vergé. It has a slightly more youthful bouquet than the 2006 Le Gay, although in some ways it is less interesting. That said, there are enjoyable leather and Morrocan spice aromas to be enjoyed. It just feels a tad static in comparison. The palate is medium-bodied with candied fruit on the entry, notes of licorice and melted tar. Interestingly, the bottle shown at Farr Vintners' blind tasting performed better than the one at the property (and incidentally, instantly nailed as La Violette thanks to its plumpness and polished sheen.) This demonstrated more complexity on the nose with a light marine influence. I would drink this over the next decade. Tasted April 2016.

Tasted blind. Mid ruby with quite a bit of evolution. Tired nose. Old-tea-leaves smell. The St-Émilion 2006 trick of over-evolved nose. Lightly drying tannins. Not gracious. (JR)

Medium red-ruby. Utterly captivating aromas of red fruits and iron complicated by an exotic white fruit note that reminded me of viognier. Suave and silky but not at all overly sweet, with a lovely subtle perfumed character in the mouth. Very complex and distinctive 100%-merlot wine in an elegant style. Finishes long and perfumed. This property, located between Le Pin and Trotanoy, was recently purchased by Catherine Pere-Verge, owner of Le Gay. The fruit was destemmed by hand, and the must went directly into barrel for fermentation, with Michel Rolland responsible for the winemaking.