2012 Chateau Grand Mayne Grand Cru Classe, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

The 2012 is a blend 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, picked from 9th October until 20th October. There is much more restraint on the nose compared to recent vintages with superb delineation and focus. A more classic Grand Mayne in the offing? The palate is very well balanced with silky smooth tannins, very fine acidity and a sophisticated, elegant finish with beautifully integrated oak. Superb wine Jean-Antoine! Tasted April 2013.

One of my favorite “under the radar” St.-Emilion estates (the 1998 is spectacular), the full-bodied, impressively well-endowed, opaque purple-colored 2012 Grand-Mayne offers up scents of blueberries, crushed rocks, spring flowers, vanilla and black raspberries. It is a blue fruit-dominated wine with lots of body, sweet tannin and hedonistic, almost primordial appeal because of its exuberant glycerin, texture and fullness. Drink it over the next 12-15 years.

A wine with very pretty fruit and well-integrated tannins with a nutty, berry and spice character. Outstanding length.

Delivers more bass than treble, with cocoa and ganache notes leading the way for a core of fig and tobacco flavors. A muscular style, but the components work together rather than at odds. —J.M.

This wine, which has given me great pleasure over many years, comes from the Nony family and is a blend of 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc. Black raspberry and blueberry fruit, a dense ruby/purple color, excellent purity, medium to full body and a moderately long finish characterize this young, relatively big-scale, extroverted St.-Emilion. It still needs some bottle age, given the tannin, but everything should come together with another 2-3 years in bottle. This is set for at least 12-15 years of longevity.

Drink 2017-2025 Inky core, purple rim. Cedar and blackcurrant pastille, plus a blueberry sweetness and a very slightly herbaceous note. Savoury and dark on the palate, savoury but not austere, just that the fruit takes more of a back seat at this point. Dense but smooth tannins. Well shaped but not yet revealed. (JH)