A dozen wines from Lalande de Pomerol tasted earlier in the year certainly show how the appellation has captured the lush fruit qualities of the vintage. Once again, plenty of sweet, ripe and unctuously styled fruit is on display here. There was a little overextraction evident in some cases, but you would imagine that most of the wines will settle during elévage. The missing ingredient here is really acidity. 2018 will give a lot of pleasure for sure, but, as in St Emilion and Pomerol, the vintage lacks the appetizing vibrancy of 2015 and 2016 with their emphasis on freshness and texture. That said there is a lot to enjoy in these wines. Undoubtedly they will give plenty of pleasure at comparatively modest prices.

The following wines [in an eccentric alphabetical order] were tasted back in April at the Grand Cercle event at Château de la Dauphine as well as in the cellars of Jean-Luc Thunevin and at Château Angélus. The picks? For me Château Le Fleur de Boüard, Le Plus de La Fleur de Boüard [not for the faint-hearted] and Domaine des Sabines. These are all seriously good wines. Château Perron La Fleur and Château Jean de Gué achieve a nice balance between lush fruit and delicacy, with Château Grand Ormeau and Château Tournefeuille fractionally behind, displaying wonderfully ripe characters if lacking a little tension [acidity].

L’Ambroisie, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Mid depth: earthy red at edge; legs; lifted; unctuous red and black fruits as well as sweet liquorice notes; very ripe; sweet and ripe entry; almost too much; bit loose on the mid-palate; lacks definition. Soft finish. Supple tannin. Feels alcoholic. Lacking in interest on the finish put quite crowd-pleasing. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2028. 87-88

Château de Chambrun, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Mid depth; vibrant meniscus; ripe; wet rock; bold; dark fruits and some black chocolate; full; savoury aromatics; lacks structure on the palate; rather loose and easy; will work well enough but lacks a little focus and tension; little dry on the very end. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2030. 86-88.

Château Le Fleur de Boüard, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Deep and saturated; nicely coloured; fresh rim – purple; like the bright black cherry fruit and lift; really love the regular bottling; has verve and life; cool entry; black cherry ripe and zesty; has depth; works really well. Nice chew. Some chocolate on the finish. Works well. [85% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon]. Tasted April ’18. Drink 2023-2033. 91-92+

Château Grand Ormeau, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Deep and saturated; legs; deep; ripe; plums; cream; quite bold and pure; like this aromatically; feels fresh; little savoury note too; soft and easy palate; full; lacks some definition; full, supple and easy. Lacks acidity but generous and pleasing. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2028. 88-90

Château Jean de Gué, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Mid depth; deep core; purple meniscus; attractive fruit; ripe and solid; good stuff: Bordeaux; some complexity too; forest floor and fruit; sweet entry; works well; lashings of fruit; some undergrowth and charred notes; soft palate; soft tannins. Easy and full. Like this. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2028. 90-91+

Le Lion de Fleur de Boüard, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Dark; earthy red at edge – not so purple; stalky black cherry and some spice; ripe and easy; fruit driven aromatics; soft entry; nice bouncy fruit; easy and full; has bounce and zap. Works. Tasted April ’18. Drink 2022-2025. 87-89

Château Moncets, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Mid depth; earthy red purple at edge; solid; marzipan notes; little extracted; rather chewy on the mid palate; feels overdone in the cellar unfortunately. Tough. May come around with fining and elévage. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2028. 84-85

Château Perron La Fleur, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Mid depth; earthy red purple at edge; fresh and plum black cherry; little stalky reductive note but opens up; emphasis on the fruit; plum, blackcurrant; has freshness; and some acidity; like this; works well; has harmony and life. Nice and zappy finish. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2032. 88-90+

Le Plus de La Fleur de Boüard, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Darker still; colour tight to the edge; very concentrated and sublimated in style; very ripe and rich; super concentrated cuvee; deep; lashings of black cherry; black fruit jam and dark chocolate; some kirsch again; full and rich; plenty of extract; lots of matter and extract; a whopper! If you like the style…wow..chewy..finish. Plenty to say! [100% Merlot]. Tasted April ’18. Drink 2025-2035. 93-94

Domaine des Sabines, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Deep and saturated colour; tight to the rim; extremely tight to the rim; focused and precise on the nose; layered; some lift; plummy purity here; really attractive and pure; lovelky entry; again very Bordeaux really just with more concentration and texture; this works really well; attractive mouthful; has texture on the finish. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2030. 90-92+

La Sergue, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Mid depth; earthy red at edge; creamy fruit; seductive and attractive; nicely plush and layered; clean and pure fruit; quite broad; lacks some definition and tension in the middle; bit soft and simple. Needs a bit more interest to make it really good. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2024-2028. 87-89

Château Tournefeuille, Lalande de Pomerol, 2018

Mid depth; dark at centre; smoky; schist; black cherry and plum beneath; feels quite laden with fruit; satin and soft; later feels very ripe; jam and raisin; falls off a bit in the glass [low acid style]; unctuously styled for sure; full; little eau de vie; some savoury characters; black fruits; alcohol; soft tannins; alcohol on the finish. Doesn’t have the length of the best here but joyful. Tasted April 2019. Drink 2023-2028. 88-90