One of the great wines of the vintage and one that can rival its 2022 counterpart the 2023 La Conseillante wafts from the glass with a strikingly floral bouquet of violets lilac raspberries exotic spices candied orange pipe tobacco and rose petals. Medium to full-bodied supple and fleshy its textural attack segues into a layered and enveloping core of pure vibrant fruit framed by sweet tannins and concluding with a long precise finish. It's a blend of 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc some 30% of which is maturing in amphorae. Harvest began on September 7 lasting until October 2 block by block.

Pure silk and velvet, with a freshness and energy coupled with its richness that make all the difference this year. With its seemingly endless layers of sweet, luscious plums, cherries, smoke, licorice, cocoa, flowers, spice, and crushed rocks, this is a beauty. The wine is full-bodied, with a gorgeous depth of flavor, seamless texture, vibrancy, and purity of fruit. The silky finish coats your mouth with flavor and the essence of its vineyard as it builds and expands. This is the first vintage produced in their new cellars. The wine is a blend of 77% Merlot and 23% Cabernet Franc, with a dollop of Cabernet Sauvignon as well. Drink from 2029-2060

The 2023 La Conseillante is very clearly one of the standouts of the year. Plush contours wrap around a core of blueberry fruit as lavender, cloves, chocolate and licorice weave across the palate. The purity here is just remarkable, especially in the bouquet. Seamless in the glass, the 2023 impresses with its understated intensity and svelte personality. It is one of the most outstanding wines of the year. An archetype. In short, the 2023 is très Conseillante. If anything, I may be underestimating it. Tasted two times.

Wow. What beauty, elegance and length in this young wine, with medium body and vivid, bright acidity that gives energy and greater length. The tannins are extremely fine-grained, with an endless, silky texture. Another al-dente wine with brilliance. Goes on for minutes. 88% merlot and 12% cabernet franc.

The 2023 La Conseillante was picked from September 7 with the final Cabernet Franc brought in on October 2 at 43hL/ha. There were just six days of picking over 3.5 weeks. Matured in 70% new oak it has a very well-defined bouquet with black cherries wild strawberries touches of violet and a hint of crushed stone. The palate is medium-bodied with a captivating edgy opening. Just slightly granular in texture thanks to the tannin structure it’s very harmonious and poised with a sophisticated mineral-driven finish. This is an exceptional La Conseillante from Marielle Cazaux and her team. It will rank alongside the 2022 even if it is very different stylistically.

Just as it was from cask, the 2023 La Conseillante is one of the vintage's most exciting wines in bottle. Offering up lavish aromas of ripe blackberries and mulberries mingled with hints of violets and mint, it's medium- to full-bodied, supple and fleshy, with an ample core of fruit, beautifully refined tannins and a long, perfumed finish. Readers who own both the deeper-pitched, elegantly muscular 2022 and the utterly charming, hedonistic 2023 will enjoy comparing and contrasting the two over the decades to come. The 2023 is a blend of 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc, some 30% of which is maturing in amphorae. Harvest began on September 7, lasting until October 2, block by block. April 2026  www.robertparker.com