2 young Lafon-Rochet

[Nicklasss]

Last night, dinner with my friend AlexH. I was in a good mood, as after the weekend in Montréal last week, i had to fly to BC on emergency on Monday morning, as our smelter there was having a problem... i was back at home on Friday noon.

So after the adrenaline, it was time to relax!

Billecart-Salmon Brut and Charles Heidseick Brut are two very good Champagne for their prices. Billecart being dryer, but with nice pâtisserie tones, yeast, lemon and bit salty. Charles being a bit richer, with also yeast, crustbread, yellow fruit and ligth sweet flowers on the final. Both deserve a note of 91-92.

The 2020 Château Lafon-Rochet i bought last week in Montréal, and opened last week to taste, was very primary last weekend. Purple fruit, purple flowers and lilac, lightly soapy and concentrated. Just one glass out, i put back the cork and brought it back home. Last night, after a week at room temperature, the wine has evolved to what is a very nice Saint Estèphe: blackberries, black prunes, old leather, light serious oak, earthy minerals. This is clearly a very nice wine, but it is not to the level of 2016. Tn : 91-92


The 2015 Connétable de Talbot is typical Saint Julien, and enjoyable already. Excellent redberries, darkberries and light spicy oak on the nose, mouth has good concentration, drinks well, with same flavors as on the nose, but add light green wood, red cherries, and some minerals. Decent length, light tannins, deductive side of merlot. Tn : 90.

Then, i opened a 2019 Le Combal Cahors, thinking it would be our last bottle. Dark red, nose of black licorice, anise, blackberries, earth. In mouth, good concentration, with blackberries, purple flowers, licorice and noble mushroom buried in earth. A light "nature" side to the wine, great drinkability, fresh, tannic, medium lenght. For just over 20 $, a super qpr. Tn: 90.

Encouraged by the ladies, i open a second Château Lafon-Rochet, but the 2016 this time. Not so long ago, opened a bottle that was corked, but not that one last night. Dark color, nice nose of blackcurrants, blackberries, light vanilla oak, something fresh too. Mouth is well balanced, energic, redberries, creamy blackcurrants, light vegetal like mint, rasberries. Nice tannins, freshness, long currants, peppercorn and smoky wood final. Excellent young wine, promising for the next 10-15 years. Tn: 94.

A good night, a third weekend in row with great red Bordeaux! I'll try to write report from the two other weekends as lot of good stuff opened...

[stefan]

>>
Billecart-Salmon Brut and Charles Heidseick Brut are two very good Champagne for their prices.
>>

I agree, Nic. To get a better Champagne than these, you must pay much more.

[jckba]

What do these run in your respective markets?

As for me, I am partial to good growers at this general price point such as Laherte Freres or Marc Hebrart or Savart.

[Nicklasss]

Jckba, these two Champagne are at 78 $cad here (58-60 $usd). But remember, monopoly by SAQ here, so no real deals!