2010 Le Plus de la Fleur de Bouard

Deep, bright, saturated ruby. Aromas of blackberry, bitter chocolate and caraway seed are sexed up by nutty oak. Densely packed, juicy and super-concentrated, with an exhilarating sugar/acid balance and lovely violet lift to the black fruit and toffee flavors. Finishes with terrific subtle length and smooth, building tannins that coat the front teeth. An outstanding vintage for this special cuvee from one of the top properties in Lalande de Pomerol, owned by Hubert de Bouard.

Made from 100% Merlot cropped at minuscule yields of 20 hectoliters per hectare, the 2010 La Plus de La Fleur de Bouard was bottled unfined and unfiltered and came in at 14.5% natural alcohol. This wine ratchets up the level of extract, power, density and richness as well as tannin, so it needs 3-4 years of cellaring and can keep, I would assume, for up to two decades, given the performance of the 2000 in recent tastings I have done. This is a beauty, a full-throttle, pedal-to-the-metal Lalande de Pomerol that is impossible to believe comes from a less heralded appellation. The standard of excellence for Lalande de Pomerol is Hubert de Bouard’s 50-acre property, over half of it located on the highly prized Neac plateau, which consists of clay, sand and gravel sub-soils.

Dark purple. Rich and polished on the nose and then very dense and dry on the palate. Like a boiled-down version of the regular wine. No more fun! (JR)