Château Larcis Ducasse 2022 Saint-Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classé

James Suckling
98-99/100 punten
This is really precise with a lazer-guided fine tannin structure throughout the wine, and juicy and electric texture. It’s so refined and polished. Endless. Wonderful young wine with a terrific future.

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
94-95/100 punten
A fleshy, opulent wine, the 2022 Larcis Ducasse bursts with aromas of rich, creamy berry fruit mingled with aromas of licorice, bay leaf and spices. Full-bodied, broad and enveloping, it's a textural, layered wine with a ripe core of fruit, supple tannins and an expansive finish. More dramatic and unabashed than the 2020, this will appeal to readers who place a premium on flamboyant extravagance; but samples tasted later during my visit to Bordeaux exhibited greater freshness and precision.

Jeb Dunnuck
98-100/100 punten
Tasted on multiple occasions and one of the legendary wines in the making from this vintage, the 2022 Château Larcis Ducasse clocks in as 86% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc that's still resting in 55% new French oak. A hypothetical blend of the 2005 and 2018, it's a deep, powerful, opulent Saint-Emilion offering an incredible array of black cherries, blackberries, smoked tobacco, chocolate, and graphite-driven aromas and flavors. With a rich, full-bodied, expansive mouthfeel, it has ultra-fine tannins, beautiful symmetry in its tannins, acidity, and fruit, no hard edges, and a killer finish. I was lucky enough to taste this on four separate occasions and I thought it had the potential to be a perfect wine every time.

The Wine Independent (Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW)
97-99/100 punten
A blend of 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Cabernet Franc, the 2022 Larcis Ducasse is deep garnet-purple in color. It wows as it powers out of the glass with bright, expressive notes of juicy blackberries, fresh black cherries, and warm plums, followed by suggestions of Indian spices, iron ore, iris bulb, and crushed rocks. The full-bodied palate is laden with rich, seductive, and amazingly energetic black and blue fruits, framed by super-ripe, velvety tannins and plenty of freshness, finishing with epic length. This 2022 is a triumph! 

Antonio Galloni (Vinous)
96-98/100 punten
The 2022 Larcis Ducasse is a huge, inky wine. A firm backbone of structure lies behind all of that opulence, yielding a wine that is both extravagantly rich and super-classic. That’s a pretty appealing combination in my book. Dark red-toned fruit, spice, leather, tobacco, incense and mocha emerge, but only with great reluctance. The 2022 is packed to the core. I don’t imagine it will be ready to drink anytime soon, but is unquestionably one of the wines of the vintage. The blend is 84% Merlot and 16% Cabernet Franc, a bit more Franc than usual, aging in equal parts 225- and 500-liter barrels. Tasted four times.

Jane Anson (Inside Bordeaux)
96/100 punten
You feel the fingerprint of the limestone here, from a team that is never afraid of austerity in a young wine is young. It opens to show creamy black and red fruits, with steely acidity that keeps the ripeness in check. 34hl/h yield, 50% new oak and for the rest 500l casks for ageing. 

Jeff Leve (The Wine Cellar Insider)
97-99/100 punten
The dark, purple hue stands out. Licorice, smoke, oyster shell, espresso, black cherries, and plums are all over the perfume. The wine explodes from the glass with its layers of opulent, black and red fruits, dark chocolate, espresso, smoke and chocolate on the palate. Full-bodied, powerful, and most importantly pure, there is a depth of flavor, and richness on the mid-palate that sticks with you through to the extended, mineral-driven finish. I would not be surprised to see this score even higher once it is in the bottle. The wine blends 86% Merlot with 14% Cabernet Franc, 14.6% ABV, 3.5 pH. The harvest took place September 13-September 23. Yields were 34 hectoliters per hectare.

Falstaff
97/100 punten
Deep dark ruby, opaque core, purple reflections, brightening on the rim. Fresh black cherries, some liquorice, floral nuances, cool, attrractive bouquet. Juicy, elegant and balanced, fine ripe fruit, good structure, long lasting, already very harmonious, great ageing potential.

Decanter
96/100 punten
Smells gorgeous, black fruits, milk chocolate and floral notes. Supple and lively, crystalline and pure, you get both the juicy, fleshiness of the dark and concentrated fruit but with tension and detail and definition. Clarity and bite, this really works and delivers everything you want in terms of tannins, minerality, freshness and density. Clearly powerful, but refined and sophisticated. Compelling and oh so drinkable. Wet stones, the minerality is gorgeous but the weight is too, this will be fantastic. 

Neal Martin (Vinous)
95-97/100 punten
This has quite a rich bouquet with opulent black cherries, boysenberry and blue fruit, vanilla extract and truffle scents. Two samples tasted, the one at the château showing more precision. The palate is medium-bodied with sweet tannins, its flesh belying the structure underneath. Liquorice lingers after the wine has departed. The mineralité floods the finish and articulates its limestone soils with aplomb. This is a seriously fine Larcis Ducasse that exudes panache.