Château Larcis Ducasse, Grand Cru Classé, St Emilion, 2023
The Gratiot family have produced a sizeable wine in 2006, dark and concentrated and with great ageing potential. Particularly sensitive this year to the need for only the gentlest of macerations, to avoid over-extraction, they have created a beautifully balanced wine with a lush palate of pure dark red berry fruit on the nose, fine and fresh tannins accompanied by plentiful crushed blackcurrant and hedgerow berries on the palate. Supple, elegant and rich in character, this wine carries a considerable structure and will therefore require some years to reach its prime. A blend of 78% merlot, 20% cabernet franc and 2% cabernet sauvignon and, for us, one of the best value wines this year.
critic reviews
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2023 Larcis Ducasse delivers an initial burst of pure, ripe blueberries and crushed blackberries before opening out to hints of fragrant soil, rose oil, black truffle, and a beguiling waft of preserved mandarin peel. The medium to full-bodied palate is tightly wound like a spring, revealing black fruit, floral, and mineral nuances with a taut structure of firm fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing very long and fantastically layered. This is stunning.
Excellent quality, this is clearly going to age extremely, has depth, intensity and sculpted tannins, fine grained and sappy. Sweet character to the brambled damson and black cherry fruit, sage, rosemary, lavender, a great benchmark wine as ever, with salinity and grip. Tasted three times, once at the estate with owner Jacques-Olivier Gratiot. 43hl/ha yield, Nicolas Thienpont and David Suire celebrating their 22nd vintage together at the estate. 3.55ph, 50% in new barrels for ageing.
The 2023 Larcis Ducasse was picked from September 14 to 25 at 43hL/ha. The nose is quite open with brambly red fruit, briar and subtle incense aromas. It's not as intense as the previous vintage, though I appreciate the definition and charm. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins on the entry that frame the layered black fruit, struck through with light flinty elements. Blind, I might have said there is Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend thanks to the graphite finish. It is a classically-styled Larcis Ducasse that should drink well for 20+ years.
Harvested between September 14 and 25, the 2023 Larcis Ducasse offers up aromas of dark berries, preserved plums, orange confit, vine smoke, licorice and spices. Medium to full-bodied, layered and fleshy, with a sweet core of fruit framed by ripe, powdery tannins, it's succulent, suave and polished, concluding a mouthwateringly mineral finish. It's a blend of 86% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc.