(2011) Harvested between 20th and 24th December, this is super sweet, glycerine-rich stuff with a real dried apricot flavour and fabulous intensity again. That decisive orange acidity and the nectarine and apricot richness is fabulous.
(2011) Slightly rotty feeling here that detracts from the purity of the fruit that is a hallmark here. Still has that orange tang and decisive acid profile, but just a little less clean.
(2011) Finer, sweet pear fruit here and some sense of minerality too. It has lovely sweetness, but it is the sweetness of very ripe fresh pear and orange, rather than the dried fruits. Only hints of toast and a very fresh finish with real tang.
(2011) Has that similar nimble character, with the oak a little more obvious at this stage, but a similar, racy finesse. Huge tang and refinement of the palate, with massive grapefruity concentration of acidity, but that lovely glace fruit freshness is there.
(2011) Harvested 31st December. Lovely nose, with a honeyed note, lots of refined, juicy fruit and ripe melon, a certain creaminess to the texture but deliciously racy lime zest finish.
(2011) Gros Manseng 50%, Petit Manseng 30%, Arrufiac 10%, Petit Courbu 10%. Obvious ripeness and sweetness, figgy and quince like, with a nicely vegetal streak some asparagus. Lovely sweetness from the late harvest, hand-picked grapes. The peach and ripe pear sweetness tempered by lots of lemony, quite mineral acidity. Fairly light, but long and persistent.
(2011) Very straightforward it seems, with lots of toasty and sweet apricot fruit, good acidity but a real tangy finish, with pithy grapefruit that lifts this, giving it great verve and punch in the finish and that natural concentration.
(2011) 80% Petit Courbu, 20% Gros Manseng, aged in 600-litre barrels for around one year. Quite a deep, golden colour. Lots of honey and nutty aromas, a Brazil nut fat and lovely sense of opulence. On the palate it has huge concentration, with lots of volume in the mouth, but retaining beautiful apple acidity. A wine that is still for sale.
(2011) Still a deep, golden hue, but not so dark. More lifted, floral and pineapple tones, and a real exotic ripeness. The fruit has real opulence and sweetness on the mid-palate, and delicious ripe pear acidity that is still pithy and grapefruity.
(2011) Deep golden colour again, with a nutty, straw-like aroma. Plenty of slightly raw wood too, with vanilla and a touch of resinous quality. On the palate that thrilling orange and lemon zest freshness, with rich mouth-feel.