2018 Les Gravieres

The 2018 Les Gravières is every bit as impressive as it was from barrel. Graphite, dried herbs, licorice, lavender and purple/black fruits are all laced together. The 2018 has shut down quite a bit after bottling. Today the acids and tannins are quite present. That won't be an issue in time, but it does mean readers need to be patient.

The 2018 Les Gravières has maintained its opulent nose of oodles of boysenberry and plummy fruit at the expense of some delineation and terroir expression. The palate is powerful and dense with a powdery texture and grippy tannins. It has lost some of its sinew but I still find that the wood tannins crowd out the fruit on the finish and impart a slight bitterness.

The 2018 Les Gravières has a rich and opulent nose with black cherries and boysenberry jam on the nose, though with aeration it appears to manifest some much-needed refinement. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy, bold tannins. This is a solid and rather sinewy Saint-Émilion and I worry that the wood tannins will ultimately dominate the finish.