2022 Le Rouge, Domaine de St Pierre

Beautifully intense, grippy tannins, slate and pummice stone, crushed rocks, inky, cassis, bilberry, great quality and very much estate signature, this is seriously impressive, with fig, baked plum, bitter chocolate, fresh pomegrante and mandarin peel acidities.

A real "wow" wine in the making, the 2022 Château Saint-Pierre (Saint-Julien) checks in as 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Petit Verdot. This darker, powerful wine offers up loads of pure cassis and black cherry-like fruits as well as ample chocolate, graphite, and lead pencil nuances. Full-bodied, concentrated, and structured, it nevertheless stays pure, impeccably balanced, and shows a real sense of elegance. The alcohol here is 13.9% and the élevage is in 48% new French oak. Tasted twice with consistent notes.

A particular success for this estate, the 2022 Saint-Pierre offers up aromas of cassis, licorice and violets, followed by a medium to full-bodied, rich and fleshy palate that's lively and sapid, with powdery structuring tannins and a penetrating finish. Its tannic weight tempers the wine's sweetness of fruit to deliver a classy, nicely balanced result.

This shows ripe black fruit with hints of vanilla and walnuts, yet it’s fresh and crunchy at the same time. Full body with fine-grained, silky tannins. Really polished and textured with a long finish. Vivid and pure blue fruit. Violets, too. Crunchy at the end. Fresh.

The 2022 Saint-Pierre (Saint-Julien) is superb. Dark, sumptuous and beautifully layered, Saint-Pierre is a wine of mystery. Inky dark fruit, lavender, licorice, plum, chocolate and gravel all build as the 2022 shows off its layered, somber personality. As always, Saint-Pierre packs a tremendous punch. It's all there in the 2022.