2018 Château Grand Village Blanc
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Tasting notes
Stone fruits, tense and nervy edges, with a saline lick through the finish, somehow seems to come from a fresher vintage than 2018. I could easily have put the big sibling Les Champs Libre in this spot, as it is one of my favourite dry whites from Bordeaux, but it is worth checking out the less expensive Grand Village. The same family attention to detail (as you would expect from the Guinaudeau family of Château Lafleur), and pretty much the perfect moment to drink. From vines on clay-limestone soils just to the northwest of Fronsac, grown at the home of Jacques and Sylvie Guinaudeau, with a significant part of the Sauvignon Blanc vines coming from Sancerre-sourced, massal-selected plants. 20% new oak.
Critic scores
James Suckling
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
The 2018 Le Blanc du Grand Village includes fruit from a massal selection taken from a parcel known as "acacia" that has gone into Les Champs Libres. The bouquet is very similar to its showing from barrel, featuring gorgeous, pure honeysuckle, walnut and light orange blossom scents. The palate is beautifully balanced, with subtle tropical notes (nectarine and passion fruit) and gooseberry commingling with a dab of ginger on the finish. Excellent.
Another brilliant vintage for this cuvée, the 2018 Grand Village (Lafleur) Blanc checks in as 75% Sauvignon and 25% Sémillon that was vinified in a mix of stainless steel and barrels, 20% being new. The Sémillon brings another level of complexity, and this offers a terrific nose of honeyed lime, Meyer lemon, and grapefruit notes all pinned by a beautiful underlying earthy mineral-component that emerges with more time in the glass. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and textured, it has a bright spine of acidity, flawless balance, and a great finish. Ranking the top whites in the region, it's going to drink well for 10-15 years.
About the producer
The Société Civile du Ch. Lafleur is the collective name for the Guinaudeau family’s wines and estates. These are some of the Right Bank’s most famous wines, including Ch. Lafleur and Les Pensées in Pomerol, along with Les Perrières, Les Champs Libres and Ch. Grand Village in Fronsac.