2018 | Clos la Madeleine | Saint-Emilion

The nose is fruity, racy and offers freshness as well as elegance. It reveals notes of fresh/ripe blackberry, ripe/fresh raspberry and small notes of strawberry associated with touches of small blue fruits, violet as well as fine hints of liquorice, discreet hints of toasted and a very discreet hint of grilled bread. The palate is fruity, mineral, racy and offers harmony, delicacy, a beautiful finesse of the grain, freshness as well as an acidulous frame. On the palate this wine expresses notes of fleshy/juicy blackberry, fleshy/juicy cassis and small notes fleshy/juicy raspberry associated with small touches touches of liquorice, black cherry as well as very discreet hints of chocolate, toasted oak/caramelized and an imperceptible hint of toasted almond (in the background). Tannins are elegant and finely chewy. Good length. Fine power, suavity and sapidity (bring gourmandize) on the finish.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: A blend of 76% Merlot and 24% Cabernet Franc, the medium garnet-purple colored 2018 Clos la Madeleine starts off just a little broody, soon giving way to very pretty scents of tilled soil, rose hip tea and fallen leaves over a core of warm redcurrants, chocolate-covered cherries and baked plums plus a hint of wild sage. Medium-bodied, the palate possesses loads of zip with vivacious red and black fruits and a racy line of freshness backed up by a chewy texture, finishing long and earthy. Not sure what the price is, but I’m imagining there’s a lot of bang for your buck here!

• James Suckling: A tight and focused red with dark-berry, chocolate and hazelnut character. Medium to full body. Racy finish.

Producer Information

Clos la Madeleine is a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classé property situated on prime land just southwest of Saint-Emilion town, in the northeast of the Bordeaux wine region. The estate, which is sometimes also titled Château Clos la Madeleine, was acquired by well-known Right Bank Bordeaux négociant firm Jean-Pierre Moueix in 2017. Effectively a single-vineyard estate, the Clos la Madeleine vineyard covers 2.3 hectares (5.6 acres) within the Château Belair-Monange property (itself owned by JP Moueix). The latter estate further includes the vineyards of the former Château Magdelaine property (combined with Belair-Monange by Moueix and, as such, struck from the classification). Clos la Madeleine sits on a southwest-facing site (and slopes) on the edge of the Saint-Emilion plateau (the iconic Château Ausone lies only a few hundred meters to the northeast) as it drops down into the flatter land around the Dordogne river to the south. Soils here are a typical clay-limestone mix with good drainage. The vineyard is a Cabernet Franc - Merlot mix with Merlot predominating at 76 percent and Cabernet Franc making up the remaining 24 percent. The vineyard is hand-harvested and fermentation tanks place in stainless steel and oak vats. The wines are pressed and then aged in French oak (around 40 percent new oak) where they undergo malolactic fermentation. The wines spend typically a year and a half in barrel before blending and bottling. Classified a grand cru in the original 1955 classification, the vineyard maintained this status across the decades until it was dropped from the 1996 classification. Again absent from the controversial 2006 edition, the property was reinstated as a grand cru classé in the 2012 classification. Prior to the takeover by Moueix, the wines were overseen by consultant (and nearby Angélus winemaker) Hubert de Boüard de Laforest from 2006 until 2016.

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