Château des Laurets Cuvée Baron – 2015
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Introduction
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Since his purchase of Château des Laurets in 2003, Baron Benjamin de Rothschild wanted to reveal the quintessence of this estate by making a special cuvée from the best plots of Merlot. The grapes are picked and sorted by hand, then fermented with all the care and attention worthy of a great-growth. This rare wine, only produced in the best vintages, reflects all the quality of a great Saint-Émilion made primarily from Merlot— a subtle combination of elegance and character.
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Vineyard Profile
- Appellation: Puisseguin Saint-Émilion
- Size: 4 hectares
- Vine Age: 70+ years
- Soil: Limestone and clay
- Density: 5,500 vines/ha
- Training: Natural grass cover, this cuvée is made from several plots located in the highest part of the vineyard that receive special attention during pruning, suckering, bud thinning, green harvesting, etc.
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Vintage Report
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2015 began with a very dry season that put the vines into hydric stress, stopping the veraison. Some rainfall in early August allowed the ripening process to carry on until harvest. September and October were rather sunny and dry, ideal for the grapes to reach their expected maturity
- Harvest Date(s): From September 30 to October 9
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Vinification
- Fermentation: Cold soaking and ageing in oak vats. Pumping over and pigeage (punching down the cap). Automatic temperature control and post-fermentation micro-oxygenation during maceration. Malolactic fermentation and ageing in new barrels.
- Aging: 16 months, 100% in new barrels
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Technical Information
- Varietal Composition: 100% Merlot
- Alcohol: 14.5 %
- Optimum Drinking: This powerful wine with refined tannin can age for 15-20 years.
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Tasting Notes
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Intense deep purple color. The nose features overtones of blackberry, cherry pits and vanilla. It has a myriad of aromas and displays a rare elegance. This 100% Merlot, made to age for a very long time, has an outstanding aromatic complexity. It has delicious blackberry and cherry flavors as well as great body, and a fine structure enhanced by oak ageing for long cellaring. The black fruit flavors are remarkably fresh.
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Images
Reviews
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Château des Laurets Cuvée Baron – 2015 – James Suckling – 92 Points
Very bold with ripe, dark plums and dark berries. A really concentrated wine with an inky color. The palate boasts smooth, ripe dark-berry flavors and suave, plush tannins. Right at the limit of ripeness. Drink or hold.
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Chateau des Laurets Cuvée Baron – 2015 – The Wine Advocate – 90 Points
The 2015 Les Laurets Baron is deep garnet-purple colored with chocolate-covered cherries, red and black plums and tilled soil notions with touches of menthol, lavender and cloves. Medium to full-bodied and firmly textured with ripe, grainy tannins and sporting impressively concentrated red and black fruits, it finishes with great persistence.
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Château des Laurets Puisseguin Saint-Emilion Cuvée Baron – 2015 – Wine Enthusiast – 92 Points
Under the same ownership as the Rothschild property Château Clarke in Moulis, this estate predominately grows Merlot. This wine comes from a selected parcel that gives rich, intense and concentrated fruitiness and dense tannins. It shows a lightly burnt character from the wood aging but the blackberry fruits are dominant and ripe. Drink from 2021.