La Clotte, St Emilion Grand Cru,

Composed of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, the 2020 La Clotte is deep garnet-purple in color. Very closed to begin, it offers glimpses of cedar, redcurrant preserves, and stewed plums, giving way to fragrant notes of violets, aniseed, and Sichuan pepper. The medium to full-bodied palate is chock full of black fruit with red berry accents and firm, grainy tannins, finishing long and spicy.

The 2020 La Clotte comes from a small 4-hectare estate, rapidly becoming one of the Vauthier family's most coveted crus. This is another in the canon of outstanding recent vintages. It offers a mixture of red and black fruit, pain d'épices and crushed stone, gaining complexity with aeration while remaining very cohesive. The palate is very harmonious with finely-chiseled tannins, a seam of graphite imparted by the 15% Cabernet Franc, beautifully focused and refined towards the finish. This is a very classy Saint-Émilion, one that will require time.