Château Grand Village, Rouge, Bordeaux Supérieur, 2020
This is undoubtedly the most impressively endowed Grand Village we can recall tasting, boasting aromas of crisp blueberry fruit, cracked cocoa, ferrous rocks and hints of oyster shell. It is powerful, yet mouth-watering and civilized on the palate, with a firm yet silky tannic network supporting the fresh, crisp, mineral soaked fruit. The overall impression is a wine that is far too grown up and serious for the price tag. It is a really impressive drink right now, and should continue to evolve and develop for several more years.
critic reviews
The 2020 Grand Village has a ripe nose with quite ebullient red fruit and well-integrated oak. It is more opulent than some of its peers, though it maintains delineation. The palate is well balanced with a slightly powdery texture and admirable depth. It is perhaps just missing a little grip, but it retains a degree of elegance and focus. This unravels a little in the glass, prompting me to dock a point. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.
A serious, more obviously structured effort than the suave 2019, the 2020 Grand Village offers up a smoky, dense bouquet with aromas of cherries, spices, flowers, lead pencil and dark wild berries. Medium to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with rich, powdery tannins and a vibrant core of fruit, it concludes with an impressively long finish and superb controlled power. It clearly needs time to chill out.
The 2020 Grand Village is a blend of 79% Merlot and 21% Cabernet Franc. A very deep garnet-black in color, it swans out of the glass with showy notes of preserved plums, blueberry compote, and chocolate-covered cherries with hints of Indian spices, violets, and tar. The full-bodied palate is rich, concentrated, and oh-so-velvety, delivering mouth-coating black fruits and exotic spices, supported by a lively backbone and finishing with great length.
This is the wine of their range that has most changed and evolved over the past few years, now a 'petit chateau' that should be sought out and put on your list if you are a Bordeaux lover. Even in a structured year like 2020, the tannins show texture and grip, with juicy, savoury cassis bud, cherry, blueberry, spiced chocolate. It's not generous, but it has freshness and life, and is a thoroughly enjoyable wine. Now 12ha, down from 18ha as they concentrate on the best parts of the clay-dominant soils. From the winemaking team of Château Lafleur. All the Bouchet (Cabernet Franc) at Grand Village is from massal selection at this point.