Verite, Le Desir 2010

robert_parker98

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

The 2010 Le Desir is a gorgeous wine. In 2010 the Cabernet Franc is 51%, considerably lower than it was in 2009, but the blend works beautifully here. Cabernet Franc provides the aromatics, while Merlot yields the fruit in this super, dense, powerful wine. All of the elements come together beautifully in this sumptuous, gracious wine. I can’t wait to taste this when it is ten years old. The 2010 Le Desir is 51% Cabernet Franc, 41% Merlot and 8% Cabernet Sauvignon. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2030. Pierre Seillan thinks of himself as a master blender and vigneron, an intriguing combination. Seillan sources fruit from a wide number of vineyards in the Kendall-Jackson empire. He employs the same approach to cooperage, mixing and matching barrels from various barrel makers to come up with the perfect combination of component wines. It works. All of the Verite wines are aged in 100% new oak, but Seillan keeps the time in oak moderate, such that these wines hardly ever show signs of oakiness, even when they are young. Seillan’s goal is to make wines that improve in bottle and that are capable of lasting 30 years. The 2009s and 2010s are both exceptional vintages. I have a slight preference for the 2010s, a vintage with more aromatic and flavor delineation, firmer tannin and more long-term potential, all results of a season with large diurnal shifts. The 2009s are the product of the vintage with much more even ripening. They will offer terrific early appeal, but also have more than enough stuffing to age well for years. I also tasted the 2010 Tannat, a new wine in its first vintage. The last bottle of the morning was the 1998 La Muse, a wine from a very challenging year that is still youthful and full of life. I have little doubt these 2009s and 2010s will prove to be superior wines. My only hope is that Verite and Kendall-Jackson will keep prices for these wines reasonable. Tel. (707) 431-3930

robert_parker93

Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

A strong showing for the 2010 barrel sample revealed lots of fruit in this primary, unevolved blend of 50% Cabernet Franc, 45% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. With a low 14% alcohol and an elevated pH of 3.72, it reveals lots of blue and black fruit, cedarwood, toasty oak and white chocolate characteristics. This lighter-styled, medium to full-bodied effort’s personality appears to be similar to the 2000 Le Desir’s.

robert_parker93

Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

A blend of 50% Cabernet Franc, 40% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon that came in at 14.1% alcohol, the 2010 Le Desir is soft and rich. As Pierre Seillan said, the huge heat wave at the end of September seems to have made the 2010 Verite wines more approachable and front end-loaded than usual. This effort displays lots of black currant and black cherry fruit along with hints of asphalt, incense and licorice. The tannins are ripe and well-integrated, and the wine is round, full-bodied and generous. It should drink well for 15-20 years. This is the flagship, luxury, world-class winery of the late Jess Jackson’s portfolio of small, high quality estates. Jackson convinced Bordelais Pierre Seillan to come to California from St.-Emilion to make these wines, and Verite has been one of the classics for well over a decade. The La Muse cuvee represents a Pomerol-styled wine, La Joie a Medoc and Le Desir a St.-Emilion. These are long-term, concentrated, tannic efforts that usually require 5-10 years of bottle age, and are meant to age for at least three decades. The 2012s possess fabulous potential. It is nearly impossible to decide which of the three cuvees is the finest (it probably depends on your own personal stylistic predilections), but the alcohols are normal for a top California vintage, ranging from 14.1% to 14.3%. Obviously, 2011 was a much more challenging vintage, and the wines reflect that although they are unquestionably successful, even in this vintage. Pierre Seillan told me that the harvest was extremely late, and there had to be an enormous amount of selection done both in the vineyard and the winery to create these cuvees. A relatively cool, late-harvest year with a tiny crop, the 2010 vintage required a tremendous selection process as well as meticulous work in both the vineyard and winery. All three offerings have turned out to be surprisingly approachable for young Verite wines. A great vintage for Verite that rivals 2012 and probably what was achieved in 2013 is 2009. It was the type of vintage that Seillan desires – high in tannin, high in extract, with incredible upside potential for all three cuvees. The 2009s are the most backward and powerful of the four vintages reviewed in this report. The alcohols ranged from 14.5% to 14.6+%. Tel. (707) 433-9000

robert_parker96

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

Verite's 2010 Le Desir is the richest and most powerful of these wines. Cedar, tobacco, mocha and sweet spices all blossom in the glass. Blackberry jam, cassis, smoke, licorice and grilled herbs open up over time. Firm, structured and huge on the palate, the Desir is the most intense and opulent of the 2010s. It is likely to require the most time to come around. The blend is 50% Cabernet Franc, 40% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2025. I tasted a wide range of wines with Pierre Seillan during my most recent visit to Verite. The 2010s were still in tank awaiting imminent bottling. For that reason, the wines were a little closed down relative to how they showed last year. The 2011 and 2010 harvests both started on September 26, but the 2010 harvest ended in mid-October, while the 2011s were picked all the way to the end of the month. Seillan describes 2011 as an earlier drinking vintage next to 2010, although given the way these wines age, I would not be surprised if the 2011s develop nicely in bottle. Seillan told me he performed aggressive leaf pulling two weeks before the harvest in order to get the fruit ripe. I also tasted all the 2002s and 2003s, and was particularly impressed with the 2002s, all wines that have held up well. Tel. (707) 431-3930

vinous96

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

Mocha, bittersweet chocolate, tobacco, menthol and savory herbs meld together in the 2010 Le Desir. Like all of the 2010s here, the Desir is going to need time to unwind and fully come together. There is wonderful definition in the flavors, along with vibrant structure and plenty of intensity. Savory herb and tobacco are some of the notes that inform the powerful finish. Like all of the 2010s, the fruit is a bit suppressed by the wine's imposing structure today. There is no shortage of personality, though. All the 2010 needs is time.