Wine Advisor
Lafleur 2007
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Description
Château Lafleur is a tiny 4.5-hectare Pomerol property located opposite Pétrus and producing wines of comparable quality. Lafleur is owned and run by Sylvie and Jacques Guinadeau. Its vineyards are situated on the gravel-rich Pomerol plateau and adjoin those of La Fleur-Pétrus. The soils here are particularly deep and are enriched by deposits of potassium and iron. Only natural fertilisers are used and yields are painfully low, even by Pomerol standards. By the 1980s, Chateau Lafleur was on its way to becoming one of the world’s most in-demand wines selling for more than the First Growths. In 1975, Robert Parker made his first visit to the estate and since then never stopped writing about the wine. His comments on Chateau Lafleur excited consumers all over the world, and thus became one of those Pomerol wines that tied to the success and continuous praise heaped on the wine by Robert Parker.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind at the 2007 Bordeaux horizontal in Southwold. The Lafleur never shows well in comparative blind tastings-it is just not that kind of wine. Here, it is endowed with a savoury meaty bouquet with some lovely ripe Cabernet Franc: fig, coca and a touch of powdered dark chocolate. The palate is medium-bodied with a spicy entry, very good weight, furry tannins, clamming up to towards the obdurate, -piss off and don't come back for a decade- finish. But you still love it. Tasted January 2011.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
A deep garnet colour. The nose needs some time in glass, but it develops beautifully, certainly with a natural sense of ripeness rather than the more ersatz raisin and prune notes found on some Right Bank wines. Baked red cherries, sous-bois, a touch of green pepper from the Cabernet Franc. Very fine delineation. The most immediately striking thing is the fineness of the tannins and the density and harmony of this Lafleur. Very focused, probably more so than the 2006. Very good weight with notes of blackberry, raspberry and a hint of mocha. Very smooth on the finish, great length. Tasted April 2008.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Delicious aromas and flavors of kirsch and licorice emerge from the dark ruby-hued 2007 Lafleur (a blend of 53% Merlot and 47% Cabernet Franc). It is a medium-bodied, round, luscious cuvee revealing more density than most of its peers. Drink it over the next 10-15 years.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
This has a very tight nose with blackberry, wet gravel, briary and just a faint hint of black plum. Very good definition, but a little surly. The palate has a tremendous entrance on the palate, the tannins gripping vice-like, with touches of blackberry, Asian spice, a hint of liquorice. Like the nose, surly, unresolved, but there as some fine tannins on the off-dry finish, with black pepper on the aftertaste. Impressive for the vintage. Drink 2020-2040. Tasted September 2008.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at BI Wine & Spirits' 10-Years-On tasting, the 2007 Lafleur has a beautifully composed bouquet with scents of black cherry, truffle, iron piping and a touch of mint. It is very well defined, nicely focused and full of breeding. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine tannin, a superb seam of acidity, good body and presence in the mouth. I adore the ferrous aspect of this Lafleur married with the sense of energy conveyed towards the finish—an off-vintage Pomerol that seems to be flourishing with bottle age. Superb. Tasted February 2017.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Rated - No tasting note given.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted from an ex-chateau bottle at the Lafleur vertical dinner at Attersee in Austria. This 2007 is a real turn up for the books. It has a dusty, slightly foursquare bouquet with cedar and graphite infusing the carapace of blackberry and raspberry fruit. It is well defined but certainly very conservative. The palate is medium-bodied with a dense, introverted entry. Just when you think it is not going to perform up to the estate’s usual standards, it dovetails into this gorgeous, corpulent, Merlot-driven finish this is pure and primal. Amazing how last year this 2007 was so closed and unyielding. Perhaps this will not be so much of a long-term Lafleur, but it is very delicious. Tasted June 2012.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2007 Lafleur has a straightforward bouquet with mulberry and strawberry pastilles, touches of scorched earth and game coming through courtesy of the Cabernet Franc. I admire the definition and poise on display here. The palate is medium-bodied with quite bold tannin and satisfying ripeness considering the growing season, a mixture of red and black fruit laced with black pepper, truffle and clove, that lead towards a solid, firm finish. Though this is an off vintage, this showing suggests it will benefit from another couple of years in bottle. Tasted at the Christies’ Lafleur masterclass in London.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(57% merlot and 43% cabernet franc) Good deep ruby-red. Complex nose melds black plum, musky chocolate, licorice, menthol and fresh herbs. Sweet, dense, ripe and silky, with lovely life and palate coverage. Pure and harmonious from the outset, with a firm architecture for the year. Finishes a bit strict but not hard, with a smoky nuance and lovely length. Pomerol does not get much better than this in 2007. The alcohol here will be in the low 13s.
About the Producer
In 2002, the Gwinoders completely acquired Lafleur, becoming the sole owner of Lafleur, and have been operating it ever since. Huabao now has 4.5 hectares of vineyards. The soil types in the garden are diverse, including gravel, clay and gravel. Generally speaking, these soils are relatively poor and very suitable for grape planting. Among the grape varieties planted in the vineyard, Merlot (Merlot) and Cabernet Franc (Cabernet Franc) are equally divided, each accounting for 50%, the planting density is 6,000-7,500 plants/ha, and the average tree age is 30 years.
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