Dark ruby with a tight rim. Still youthful with quite some mileage. It recalls some elements of its elder brother, the First Wine Rauzan Segla. The nose of Segla 2014 is friendly, fresh and fragrant with fresh cherry, ripe strawberry, blueberry, violets, and purple florals with a mouthful of cherry, raspberry, and dark chocolate with rich, lengthy and soft tannins. ABV 13.5%; balanced ; medium-bodied. From 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc, it is intense as a second wine, whose intensity is accentuated by the 2014 vintage character. Good now, but the wine will continue to evolve over the next five years.
The score is reasonably high, for example, JS92.
'Very fresh and bright with strawberry, mineral and flower aromas that follow through to a medium body, fine and polished tannins and a fresh and clean finish. Harmonious. Beautiful second wine. Hard not to drink now.'
Its first wine gets an RP95; also WS95. It is considered the 'Head' of the Second Growths from Margaux.
The colour is still youngish- a deep ruby core with a medium rim. The bouquet releases fresh dark fruit, notes spices, toast, and graphite. On the palate, it is fruity(black and red currants, orange peel), rounded and refined, with sound and perfectly integrated tannins. Of medium length, this elegant wine benefitted from 13 years of ageing to bring out a richness beyond a humble Cru Bourgeois. It is rich for the CB standard: 14% ABV; 16 months of oak ageing(50% new); cabernet-based (60%), by Eric Boissensoit, who has been to us making fine, elegant wines.
Lilian Ladouys is a Saint-Estèphe Cru Bourgeois that took a long time to find its style of today. And it is very affordably priced, especially for 2009 of this quality.
Scores are outstanding for the price.
93 points James Suckling
Best wine ever from here, with layers of ripe fruit, spices and milk chocolate character. Full and long. Velvety. Gorgeous. Best after 2018.
92 points Wine Spectator
On the toasty, more modern side of the spectrum, with ambitious roasted fig, apple wood and blueberry confiture notes followed by racy graphite, espresso and blackberry pâte de fruit. Not shy, but has the density for balance. Best from 2013 through 2024. (JM)
Deep, bright ruby. Perfumed, floral aromas of cherry liqueur, blueberry, blackcurrant and fine oak. Supple, deep, with good fat- a Parker-styled wine from lush Merlot and fragrant Franc fruit. The palate is fresh, juicy, typical, mineral, dynamic, and intense; the finish is truffle, mocha and undergrowth, chocolate and sweet spice. Lovely gentle extraction; fruit well fixed; bodied; reasonable long. The wine's mid-palate stuffing nicely supports the suave tannins. With an ABV of 13.5%, Le Bon Pasteur 2007 has the peculiarity of being attractive when young and ageing gracefully.
In a vertical wine tasting on selected vintages from Le Bon Pasteur from 1990 to 2007 we hosted for HKWS 3 years ago, 2007 did not stand out but had been working well enough.
Le Château Bon Pasteur is a 15-hectare property located in the small village of Maillet in Pomerol. When the Rolland family acquired it, this part of the appellation was not one of the most famous ones. It was not until the end of the 1970s, when Michel Rolland arrived at the domain, that this wine gained notoriety. However, even at Bon Pasteur, Michel Rolland completed his winemaking vision. The progress is immediate with a recipe he will apply in the many properties he will advise: grapes harvested very mature, controlled maturing and minimal yields. In 2013, the castle was sold to a Hong Kong consortium. But Michel Rolland continues to follow the vinification closely.
Parker awarded the wine 91 and wrote, 'Tasted blind at the 2007 Bordeaux horizontal in Southwold. An impressive performance from Michel Rolland's Pomerol growth exceeds my expectations from the barrel. It has a very high-toned nose with macerated black cherries, black olive and an estuarine tincture. The palate is quite sweet on the entry, well balanced with supple, fleshy dark red fruits, very harmonious and succinct towards the minerally finish, whilst that nose is beginning to mellow and become more refined. Aeration is certainly benefitting this Pomerol, and it ends up very attractive. Tasted January 2011. (Edited)
