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.

After a cold, dry winter, the weather turned rainy and cool in April, causing a rather late budbreak and a somewhat slow growth of the vine shoots. As of May 1st however, temperatures rose quite sharply and settled above the seasonal norms, without ever reaching excessive highs. This allowed a quick and successful flowering that promised a very even ripening of the berries. By then a drought had begun to set in, though in these early days we had no idea of how severe and long it would actually be. While these very dry months had some very hot days, the nights remained rather cool. This contrast helped the tannins and anthocyanins to concentrate in the skins of the red.