Chateau Lafleur - Les Champs Libres 2023

JEB DUNNUCK: "All Sauvignon Blanc, the 2022 Les Champs Libres Blanc is straight-up brilliant, and I'd easily put this in the top handful of whites in the vintage (and I'd say that for many vintages today as well). Honeyed flowers, minty herbs, crushed stone, and citrus all define the aromatics, and it's medium to full-bodied, wth a beautifully layered, seamless mouthfeel, high acidity, and a distinct salinity on the finish that keeps you coming back to the glass. This is a masterclass in world class Sauvignon Blanc that readers shouldn't miss if given the chance."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The Les Champs Libres 2023 Blanc is one of the white wines of the vintage. Exhaling aromas of lime blossom, spices, confit citrus, lemon oil and spring flowers, it’s chalky and concentrated with fleshy, structuring tannins and bright acids that segues into a long, saline and mineral finish. This is crafted from 100% Sancerrois massal selections of Sauvignon Blanc. Kudos!"

DECANTER: "Acacia and chamomile, so aromatic on the nose, expressive and open. Really alive and forward. Juicy and energetic, high toned with a brightness, sweetness, sourness and bitterness. Really well constructed, so much going on and layers of flavour and texture. Wide with a soft grip that lingers on the tongue and cheeks, almost sherbet like. This has a herbal and green fruit tang with some peach and lime element too. It’s expansive but keeps a really distinct linear and firm backbone but there’s ample edges too. Not harsh or austere with such a long finish, really goes on and on."

JAMES SUCKLING: "Lime and honeysuckle aromas here, as well as lemon rind. It has a medium to full body, a dense center-palate and crunchy fruit. It’s rich on the finish, yet remains vivid and long. 100% sauvignon blanc from Sancerre clone."

VINUM: "100% Sauvignon Blanc, noch etwas vom Ausbau geprägt, zeigt Tiefe, Würze, Kräuter, Zitrusfrüchte, Kamillenblüten, grüner Apfel, mineralische Untertöne; saftig am Gaumen, baut Druck auf, perfekt reife Frucht, Topsäure, reichhaltig, jedoch nicht üppig, sehr vertikal und fast schon burgundisch im Ausdruck. Hervorragend!"

FALSTAFF: "Sehr helles Gelbgrün, silberfarbene Reflexe. Frischer grüner Apfel, ein Hauch von Stachelbeeren, ein Hauch von frischer Birne, zart nach Ginster, blumiger Touch, facettenreiches Bukett. Straff, elegant, dicht und expressiv, finessenreiche Struktur, wirkt leichtfüßig, mineralisch-zitronig, ein rassiger Speisenbegleiter mit sicherem Reifepotenzial."