This is very long and salty, with dark fruit and fine tannins. It highlights the quality of the vintage. Medium body and fine tannins. 88% merlot and 12% cabernet franc.

As ever with the Nicolas Thienpont wines, you feel the ambition and the skill. A ton of ageing capability, savoury, black cherry, redcurrant, pomegranate. This is sappy and tasty, feel the texture and the tension, majoring on red fruits. Vineyard spread across 2ha in Monbadon with an extra plot on plateau near Château d'Aiguilhe, plus a further plot in St Genès, all very much limestone dominant. In organic conversion.

The 2023 Alcée was picked September 15 to 25 at 18.5hL/ha. Both samples were showing just a little reduction on the nose, though it opens in the glass with black cherries, boysenberry and light floral scents, violets and iris. The palate is medium-bodied with sapid black fruit, fine acidity, a more muscular Alcée here but at least there is freshness on the finish. The second sample at the end of my tasting exhibited more length and complexity and my score reflects this.

The 2023 Alcée is a dense, plush, explosive wine. Inky dark fruit, leather, licorice, mocha, sage and chocolate are all amplified to the maximum. Poor soils yielded an especially dense, opulent Alcée. There's just a bit of dryness on the finish. Tasted four times.