Château Gruaud Larose 2023

A complete knockout of a wine in 2023. Deep, vibrant purple in colour. Lots of milk chocolate, some exotic spices and black fruit touches on the nose, along with floral scents of roses and violets – smells gorgeous. Supple and filling, an immediate weight and texture on the palate, thick silk and ripe fruit, massy but then almost straight away quite clean and crisp. Forward and focussed, tannins RE supportive but so well integrated into the wine – almost a seamless expression – with plenty of underlying power. It’s delicious. Very drinkable, finessed and restrained, nothing overdone, no harshness. Everything feels in its place. Juicy and succulent cherry, blackcurrant and blueberry with high mouthwatering acidity. A great wine, I love it because it’s layered and lifted, you can feel the sculpting with muscles on show and it feels very ‘put together’. There’s lots of strict Cabernet, but this has a touch of plushness which you can’t help but smile at. A top buy in 2023. 40% grand production, taken from 60% of the estate. 15% press wine. Drin king window: 2034-2049. (Georgina Hindle,decanter.com)