Wine Advisor
Lafleur 2012
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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 Southwold 2012 tasting, the 2012 Lafleur has a very well-defined bouquet that is complex and laden with blackberry, granite, cedar and veins of graphite, all with razor-like precision. The palate is medium-bodied with fine delineation and lovely poise. There are plenty of graphite-infused black fruit interwoven into this Pomerol with a cheeky dab of spiciness on the finish that needs to manifest just a little more precision in order that it attains full potential. As usual, Baptiste, Julie and Jacques Guinaudeau have conjured a serious Lafleur destined for long-term ageing. Tasted January 2016.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Reminiscent of the 2001 Lafleur, the 2012 is supple and elegant as well as impressively pure, textured and medium-bodied, with sensual kirsch-like fruit intermixed with loamy soil, licorice and incense notes. While not particularly powerful, it possesses a deep ruby color with purple nuances, and is stunningly pure with no hard edges. This 2012 will be drinking well by age 5 or 6 (atypical for a young Lafleur), and should keep for 15 or more. Baptiste Guinaudeau, the young, tall proprietor of this tiny treasure on the Plateau of Pomerol, harvested his Merlot at a perfect moment, September 23, and finished with the Cabernet Franc on October 6, several days before a huge deluge inundated Bordeaux. He spoke of 46 straight days with no rain, which created hydric stress in parts of their vineyard. The final blend for the 2012 Lafleur was 54% Cabernet Franc and 46% Merlot. Yields were low, never having surpassed 40 hectoliters per hectare in over 30 years, even in abundant years such as 1990 and 1982.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The Grand Vin is a blend of 46% Merlot picked on 23rd September and 54% Cabernet Franc picked on 6th October cropped at around 32hl/ha. The Merlot is quite expressive on the nose once again with redcurrant and raspberry scents intermingling with wilted rose petal scents and flinty notes. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly chalky tannins on the entry. The acidity is crisp and lifted. This is a more masculine Lafleur: a little broody as it so often is at this primordial stage, the oak (around 25% new) waiting patiently in the background. There is good weight here and finish has a generosity and openness that is unusual for the vintage. Tasted April 2013.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Deep ruby to the rim, the 2012 Lafleur possesses beautiful kirsch, sweet raspberry fruit, ripe tannin, and a lushness and roundness. It is medium to full-bodied and complex, with an exceptional texture and purity – all hallmarks of this property. This wine should drink well for another 15 or more years.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2012 Lafleur presents a distinctly red-toned profile to match its silky, open-knit personality. Crushed flowers, sweet red cherry, plum, mint and spices are all nicely layered throughout. Medium in body, the 2012 nevertheless possesses lovely depth and pliancy, both of which suggest it will provide readers with a long window of exceptionally fine drinking. Proprietor Baptiste Guinaudeau describes 2012 as a cool vintage of open-knit wines and compares his 2012 to the 2001. This is a superb showing and one of the standouts of the year. Readers will find many terrific 2012s, but Lafleur is distinguished by its soul, something that is not to easy to find in Bordeaux. The 2012 is 55% Cabernet Franc and 45% Merlot.
Reviewed by: Ian d'Agata
(54% cabernet franc and 46% merlot). Bright ruby-red. Perfumed aromas of blackcurrant, red berries, violet and vanilla. Enters sweet and creamy, with red and black fruit flavors, but turns austere toward the back, showing slightly tough tannins that will likely need considerable élévage to smooth out. Lovely lingering note of violet on the finish.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2012 Lafleur is high-toned on the nose with liquorice and blueberry scents, lavender oil and wild heather. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy, red berry fruit laced with brown spices, cracked black pepper, cedar and tobacco, almost dovetailing into a Médoc-like finish. This is one of the few Pomerols that require further time in bottle. Tasted blind at the Southwold Ten-Year On tasting.
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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