La Clotte, St Emilion Grand Cru, 2021
Alas, Alain and Pauline Vauthier didn't produce any Fonbel, Simard, Haut Simard or Moulin St Georges this year. They produced La Clotte, tiny quantities of Chapelle d'Ausone and Ausone. La Clotte has gained a cult following. Produced from old vines (average age 57 yo) on clay and limestone slopes to the east of the village. There's plenty of volume to the fruit. Quite plush, seductive and dark, flecked with mineral notes. Perfumed, ripe and pleasing.
critic reviews
A blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, La Clotte 2021 has a medium to deep garnet-purple color. It jumps from the glass with notes of black cherries, redcurrant preserves, and black raspberries, followed by hints of cinnamon toast and star anise, with a waft of black pepper. Light-bodied, elegant, and light on its feet, the palate delivers silky tannins and well-knit freshness, finishing with a skip in its step.
This is understated with hidden depths, walking the line of ripeness in a lighter frame that will be ready to drink in a few years. Gentle gunsmoke on the nose, dominant limestone character, with chalky minerality, juicy lemongrass, slate, redcurrant and raspberry fruits, with higher acidity greengage plum. Harvest October 2 to 6. Old vines, average age 57 years, Thierry Lezin cellar master. 100% new oak. Second year of organic converison. Harvest October 2 to 6, 29hl/h yield.
The 2021 La Clotte has a delightful bouquet with black cherry and blueberry fruit, touches of violet and iris flower, the oak here very well integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tension and quite high acidity, fresh and almost citric with a short, black olive-tinged finish. Enjoy it over the next 10 to 12 years.
The 2021 La Clotte offers up attractive aromas of raspberries, cherries and plums framed by spicy new oak, followed by a medium-bodied, fleshy palate with a bright core of fruit that's animated by tangy acids and melting tannins. It's a fresh, mineral middleweight that will offer a broad drinking window.