2021 Les Grandes Murailles

The 2021 Les Grandes Murailles has an intriguing and complex bouquet, slightly feral in style compared to its peers, revealing baked cherries, loam and meat juices—almost Rhône-like! The palate is medium-bodied with a pliant entry, again, a more fleshy Saint-Émilion compared to others, with fine acidity and a dash of white pepper and clove toward the finish. This is thoroughly enjoyable and should give wine lovers 15-20 years of drinking pleasure.

The 2021 Les Grandes Murailles is a fine effort in this vintage, its last before being incorporated into Clos Fourtet with the 2022 Saint-Émilion classification. Dark and brooding, with persistent tannins, the 2021 is going to need a few years to soften. The 2021 is an especially somber Grandes Murailles, but it does have good energy and plenty of style. Lavender, mocha and crème de cassis linger. It will be interesting to see if the tannins soften.

What turned out to be the last vintage produced from this two-hectare parcel just outside the village of Saint-Émilion, which has now been incorporated into Clos Fourtet, the 2021 Grandes Murailles exhibits aromas of cherries, minty red berries, spices and pencil shavings, followed by a medium to full-bodied, ample and fleshy palate built around powdery tannins and tangy acids.