CHÂTEAU GRUAUD LAROSE

95-97 points

Neal Martin, Vinous

An impressive bouquet with pure blackberry & raspberry fruit, black truffle and sous-bois scents. I am impressed by its delineation & focus; frankly, these are the nicest aromatics I’ve encountered for a while at this address. The palate is medium bodied with fine-grain tannins. I cannot remember a Gruaud at this nascent stage that exhibits this level of energy & tension. There’s much more precision here. Mineral-driven toward the finish, this easily surpasses vintages made at the estate over the last decade & more. Perhaps like the legendary Gruauds of old (1982, 1961, 1928, even 1870)? Gruaud reborn.

A wine made with long ageing firmly in mind, almost always using a full 80 per cent of new oak for ageing, its fine gravels can reach down five metres on parts of the St Julien plateau. Today the château leads the way in green practices. 2018 saw a greater shift towards biodynamics, with a flock of 300 sheep used to keep grass under control between the rows during the winter months, as well as providing natural compost.

Gruaud Larose, as Jane Anson notes in her book, has been something of a green trailblazer in Bordeaux, quietly going about its business and investing heavily in biodynamics to ensure that the soil is rich in minerals and healthy. The full 82ha was converted to biodynamics in 2019 and certified (a long, arduous, and expensive that most estates eschew) in 2021.

Pesticides & insecticides haven’t been used since the 1990s and the current holistic approach sees organic compost, water recycling, homeopathic treatments for vineyard diseases and vineyard workers who look after a specific small plot each, managing it on a micro basis.

I too awarded Gruaud Larose 95-97 points marvelling at its floral nose and confident, assured structure. This will surely be one of the vinous bargains of the vintage.