Tasting Notes
Vinous 89-91
(80% merlot, 20% cabernet franc; 3.65 pH; 3.65 total acidity; 12.9% alcohol): Good full red. Aromas of blackcurrant, strawberry, camphor and cocoa are lifted by an exotic spicy violet perfume. Silky-sweet, precise and intense, showing excellent lift to the red fruit and spice flavors. Wonderfully juicy, youthfully imploded wine, finishing with serious but fine-grained tannins and noteworthy length. This isn’t the most concentrated Le Dome ever but it’s beautifully balanced and precise. The cabernet franc was picked on October 8 and 17.
JancisRobinson.com 15
Tasted blind. Lightish garnet. A little like dried cherry – a touch oxidised? Better on the palate, chalky tannins but not much charm. Dry finish. Thin. (JH)
Anticipated maturity: 2017-2023
Robert Parker 91
The 2013 Le Dôme is a very respectable Saint Emilion from Jonathan Maltus OBE, a wine that I appreciated from barrel and likewise in bottle. It has a crisp, focused bouquet with blackberry, wild hedgerow and subtle orange blossom notes. The palate is medium-bodied with quite firm tannin but they are cloaked in plenty of crisp, almost citrus-fresh fruit. It is still a tad masculine compared to recent vintages, but it will soften up and drink well for the next decade.
Anticipated maturity: 2018-2030
