Château Lafleur-Gazin 2023

The Mouiex firm acquired this estate in 2021 (after cultivating it in fermage since 1974) and sold off the less optimally situated parcels lying on sandy soils. The 2023 Lafleur-Gazin offers up aromas of dark berries, cherries, baked plums and mint, followed by a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and layered palate that’s quite deep and extracted, perhaps reflecting an understandable ambition to signal new seriousness at this address. It’s 100% Merlot. (William Kelley,robertparker.com)