Description
Chateau Laroque has to be the highest rated Grand Cru Bordeaux from the epic 2022 vintage!
Even though last week we were selling the benchmark 2022 Cheval Blanc St. Emilion at $995 a bottle, believe it or not, we continue to scour the incredible 2022 vintage to offer you the finest quality-value wines. Here is our latest outstanding discovery!
Chateau Laroque, with its mighty 12th century tower, is still a most imposing defensive stronghold looming over the St. Emilion area. Located to the south of the village of Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes, it is built on a plateau of limestone rock, from which the estate took its name.
Once the cellars were restored in the 19th century by Maurice Dufaure de Rochefort, he turned his focus solely on vine-growing. After the devastating phylloxera epidemic in the 1860s, it wasn’t until the estate and its wines were given a new lease of life in 1935 thanks to the unrelenting work of its new owners: the Beaumartin family.
Over the decades that followed, and with the appointment of estate manager Bruno Sainson, Chateau Laroque reclaimed its identity for quality/value, and emerged as one of the finest growths in St. Emilion with 150 acres under vine, and rising to the rank of Grand Cru Classé in 1996.
The Beaumartin family brought in David Suire in 2015 to take over the management of the wine estate from Bruno Sainson. A new chapter has thus begun in the history of this majestic property. The results are most evident in the estate’s superb 2022.
97 points Jeb Dunnuck! Looking at the Grand Vin 2022 Chateau Laroque, it checks in as 98% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc raised in 60% new oak with a mix in larger formats, as well as a portion in foudre. Gorgeous black raspberries, spring flowers, graphite, and truffly mineral and crushed stone-like nuances all shine in this stunningly complex, medium to full-bodied effort. With ripe, polished tannins, perfectly integrated acidity, and ultra-fine tannins, it’s going to drink well for at least 30 years. The alcohol here is a healthy 14.7 with a pH of 3.4. This is an absolutely gorgeous wine! Buy a case for your cellar. You can thank me later. Drink 2025-2055.
97 points Decanter! A pure and focused nose full of ripe but cool black fruit with soft hints of violets and vanilla. This delighted during Primeurs and it’s turned out excellently in bottle. Juicy, clean and crystalline with a perfect balance of fruit, tannins and acidity with plenty of underling power but delivered so elegantly. Great harmony and drinkability on offer. Ends salty with graphite and slate really putting the limestone terroir into the glass. Delicious. Another excellent bottle from this rising start estate under the helm of David Suire.
95 points Wine Advocate! The 2022 Laroque has turned out very well indeed in bottle, offering up aromas of cassis, plums, pencil shavings and violets, followed by a medium to full-bodied, suave and vibrant palate that’s pure, concentrated and penetrating. Harmonious and integrated, this limestone terroir’s identity really shines through. Drink 2027-2045.
95 points Vinous! The 2022 Laroque is even better from bottle than it was en primeur. Dark, rich and enveloping, the 2022 is seriously impressive. Black cherry, leather, licorice, dried herbs and mocha race across the palate. The possesses superb depth and nuance while capturing all of the richness of the year. Laroque is very clearly one of the sleepers of the year. Superb. 98% Merlot & 2% Cabernet Franc.