Buying options
Tasting Notes
This is a compact cylinder of ripe and fresh fruit with currant, fresh-herb and dry-earth character on the palate. So solid. Full-bodied yet refined and checked in every way. Well-defined, formed and perfect. Just a hint of volcanic salt and iron. Contemplate this one. Try after 2026.
Critic Scores
Average Score
James Suckling
Wine Spectator
More reviews and scores
The wine is full-bodied and concentrated. But it's not a wine of power. Instead the wine lives through its purity, sensuality, length and opulence. The plum and cherry core of fruit expands on the palate and in the juicy, long finish. This is the final vintage made from 100% Merlot.
Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 L'If is a little shy to begin, opening out to show a beautiful red and black plums, kirsch and rose-laced personality, plus hints of tobacco and wild sage. Medium to full-bodied, the palate offers beautifully ripe, satiny tannins and wonderful freshness supporting the elegant, perfumed fruits through the long finish.
Gives a warm, inviting blast of pure, juicy cherry and plum sauce flavors, with a lightly toasted frame. Pretty anise and black tea notes in the background and a fresh mineral streak on the finish. Grows steadily in the glass too. Sneaky good. Apr 2017, James Molesworth, www.winespectator.com
About the producer
Known for his tiny, iconic Pomerol estate Le Pin, Jacques Thienpont purchased this estate in Saint-Emilion in 2010. Giving it the name L’If (the yew tree), the property – positioned close to Troplong Mondot – is rapidly becoming as sought-after as its sibling.