Chateau Lafon Rochet 2022

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Rich in color, the wine is floral, with pepper, spice, tobacco leaf, currants, and blackberries. Medium-bodied, fresh, soft, ripe, round, and polished, with blackberries, black cherries, chocolate, spice, and cedar nuances. The fruits are fresh, bright, and creamy. Give this just a few years in the bottle and it promise to be even better! The wine was made from blending 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc. 14.5% ABV, 3.77 pH. This is the first vintage with the new owner, Jackie Lorenzetti, and the team of Emmanuel Cruse, fully in charge. Drink from 2025-2045."

JAMES SUCKLING: "This shows a terrific tannin backbone with blackcurrants and berries. Medium body. Solid fruit. Vivid. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 31% merlot and 4% cabernet franc."

JEB DUNNUCK: "One of the bigger, more structured wines in Saint-Estèphe, the 2022 Château Lafon-Rochet checks in as 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc. Ripe blackcurrants, smoky blue fruits, scorched earth, and chocolate all define the aromatics, and this concentrated, medium to full-bodied, powerful wine has ample mid-palate depth, ripe yet significant tannins, and a great finish. It's not for the instant gratification crowd and is going to need 7-8 years, if not a decade, of cellaring. It's a beautiful wine though, worthy of purchasing and cellaring."

FALSTAFF: "Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Feine Kräuterwürze, schwarze Kirschen, Brombeerkonfit, dezente Kräuterwürze. Kraftvoll, straff, dunkles Nugat, gute Frische, betonte Mineralität im Abgang, reife Zwetschken und Kirschen im Nachhall, ein stoffiger Speisenbegleiter mit Entwicklungspotenzial."

LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: „A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc, the 2022 Lafon-Rochet has a pH of 3.77 and a TPI of 83. It has a deep garnet-purple color and after a bit of shaking it erupts with intense scents of fresh blackcurrants, black raspberries, and kirsch, followed by hints of underbrush, camphor and iron ore. The full-bodied palate is concentrated and yet possesses lovely freshness, featuring ripe, grainy tannins and loads of mineral sparks which lift the ripe black fruit to a long finish. Impressive effort for the first full vintage under the new management!"

VINUM: "Besonders komplexe Aromatik; im Mund von auffallender Präzision, besitzt Tiefe, Dichte und enorme Rasse und bleibt doch dank hohem Fruchtgehalt angenehm trinkig und harmonisch."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The inaugural vintage for winemaker Christophe Congé, the 2022 Lafon-Rochet is an ambitiously styled blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc. Offering up aromas of crème de cassis, burning embers and loamy soil, it's medium to full-bodied, broad and velvety, with supple, generously extracted tannins and a rather lavish, demonstrative profile. It's a wine crafted to grab one's attention, but if élevage is kind to it, it may make my score seem conservative."

WEINWISSER: "Opulentes blaubeeriges Bouquet, schwarze Johannisbeere, getrockneter Rosmarin und erkalteter Hagebuttentee. Am geradlinigen Gaumen mit seidiger Textur, sandigem Extrakt, engmaschigem Tanninkorsett und mittlerem Körper. Im gebündelten Finale Pflaumenhaut, dunkle Mineralik und feinmürbe Adstringenz, aufgerundet. 2028 – 2045."