The 2020 La Conseillante was bottled in the beginning of June. This takes time to unfurl in the glass, blackberry and iris, touches of black truffle and cigar humidor, all beautifully defined. The Cabernet Franc, despite constituting a minor part of the blend plays a major role in the aromatics, lending a touch of black pepper. The palate is medium-bodied with a saline entry, here, the Merlot taking over the steering wheel, fresh and saline, a discreet touch of white pepper mixed with sage and a hint of graphite. Quite persistent in the mouth yet I feel this might close up for a time in bottle. It's quite a serious wine, less flamboyant than the previous vintage, one for hardcore Pomerol aficionados. This is a La Conseillante for long-term ageing. Superb. 02/2023 The 2020 La Conseillante was picked September 14–17 for the Merlot and September 21–30 for the Cabernet Franc (eight picking days), the yields coming in at 37hl/ha, and matured in 70% new oak. Of the 13 parcels, four underwent vinification intégrale this year. Iridescent purple in color. The nose makes an immediate impression, delivering pure and quite precocious black currants and crushed iris flowers; subtle touches of morello cherries develop with aeration. It is beautifully defined and the oak seamlessly integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent, ripe tannins that disguise the backbone of this exquisitely balanced Pomerol. A discreet crescendo leads to a pixelated finish of awe-inspiring persistency. The old

The 2020 Conseillante offers up gorgeous scents of mocha, cinnamon, lavender and dried herbs. This year’s blend is 87% Merlot and 13% Cabernet Franc, with the Franc very much in evidence, especially in the wine’s aromatic presence. The 2020 is a very restrained, buttoned up Pomerol, less exuberant than some recent vintages, but super-finessed, pretty much as it was en primeur. It will be interesting to see where this goes. There’s potential for sure, how much is less obvious. The 2020 is very pure but also lithe in feel. It was aged for 16 months in a combination of 70% new oak, 27% one-used barrels and 3% amphora. 02/2023 The 2020 La Conseillante is a supremely elegant, restrained wine that shows the continued move toward finesse here. Silky and gracious, it’s wonderfully classy from start to finish. Lavender, mint, spice and mocha complement the purplish berry fruit nicely, all framed by bright saline and mineral notes that lend energy. Today, the 2020 is quite reserved, with less opulence than some previous vintages. It's the sort of wine that is shy in its youth and then explodes with years in bottle. Yields were just under 40 hectoliters per hectare, very much in line with years like 2016, for example. Harvest took place September 4–19 for the Merlot and 21–30 for the Franc, more or less in line with what has become the norm of late. As usual, the malos were done in steel. Aging is 70% new oak, 27% once-used barrels and 3% amphora. It's a brilliant effort from Technical Director Marielle Cazaux and her team.

The 2020 La Conseillante is a blend of 87% Merlot and 13% Cabernet Franc. Seventy percent of the wine is being aged in new French oak barriques, 27% in second-fill barrels and 3% in amphorae. The alcohol came in at 14% and the pH is 3.64. Deep purple-black colored, it sails gracefully out of the glass with vivacious notes of black raspberries, kirsch and redcurrant jelly, leading to suggestions of ripe, juicy blackberries, violets, star anise and iron ore with a faint waft of dried mint. The medium to full-bodied palate is an exercise in elegance, delivering a quiet intensity of pure, energetic red and black berry layers with gorgeous floral and mineral sparks, framed by perfectly ripe, finely pixilated tannins and seamless freshness, finishing with epic length and the most breathtaking perfume. Simply mind-blowing. This is Marielle Cazeau’s sixth year at La Conseillante, having arrived at the estate in 2015 from just over the fence, so to speak, as former winemaker for Petit Village. “The summer was very warm and dry,” said Cazeau. “There is lots of talk about hydric stress this vintage. We were locked down with the vines, so we spent a lot of time in the vines. There was no leaf removal this year, because we needed to protect the bunches. We plowed the grass cover between the rows to create a mulch. This helped a lot to keep the moisture in the soil. I also did the green harvesting just before veraison this year—to give the vines a boost, to give the good bunches more water. We have a good clay composition in the soil too. So, naturally, there was less hydric stress among our vines. In the end, vineyard management and terroir made all difference this year.” One of the most striking features of the 2020 La Conseillante sample I tasted was the tannins, which I call, “perfectly ripe, finely pixilated” in my tasting note. “I worked for a few years on the tannin management,” Cazeau said with a smile. “I have tried to best express the estate’s DNA. Picking date is so important for this. If you don’t have great knowledge of your vineyard, the date of picking the grapes can be too late. I know my parcels very well. The date of picking is most important. Then, I adjusted the temperature of the fermentations. We start at 20 degrees Celsius. We kept it low. We do not use any machines for the pump-overs. We only do pumping-over by hand, for better control. And I use less and less sulfites. The sulfites can hide a little bit of the aromas. We have decreased the sulfites by 40% over the last few years. The oak we use—we choose the cooper very carefully and with a lot of experimenting. In the end, it is all these tiny details that produce this result. And we had healthy yields of 40 hectoliters per hectare. I loved this vintage! I am ready to sign [on] for another vintage like this. If you are on top of everything, you can have good yields and good quality in 2020.”

Couleur sombre, intense, pourpre et belle. Nez très aromatique, fin, subtil, au fruité mûr se révélant profond et complexe à l’agitation du verre. Nuances d’encre et de fruits noirs. Bouche tout en minutie tactile, avec ce que ce cru peut donner de grâce et d’expression unique avec en plus cette année une sensation de densité qui étoffe le vin en finale, le pousse, l'étire. Et il s’achève en dansant sur une folle complexité. Minutieux, délicat et dense à la fois, profond, noble, il surprend tant il échappe avec brio aux pièges tendus par cette année climatique. Voilà la plus agréable des nouvelles. En trouvant les clés de ce rendu Marielle Cazaux et Valmy Nicolas deviennent maîtres de ce jardin et placent le cru juste derrière Lafleur et Petrus. Bravo ! Assemblage : 87 % merlot, 13 % cabernet franc. Degré d’alcool : 14°. pH : 3,67. Rendement : 39 hl/ha.

The balance and energy to this is very impressive with blackberry, black-olive, tar and walnut character. It’s full, but very compact with superb tannin quality that is intense, yet so fine-grained, building layers on the palate. A subtle and structured young wine. It really goes on and on.