2013 Fleur Cardinale

The wine, a final blend of 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon, produced just over 4,000 cases, which is almost half the winery's normal production. Their brilliant duo of consultants was Jean-Luc Thunevin and Michel Rolland-s assistant Jean-Philippe Fort. Natural alcohol comes in at 13.5% and the wine is soft, round, opulent and elegant with sweet blackcurrant and black raspberry fruit, a hint of cherries, dusty, loamy soil undertones, tobacco leaf, licorice and a touch of background oak. It is medium-bodied, very attractive and can be drunk early on or cellared for 7-10 years. This is, once again, a sleeper of the vintage. This has been one of the outstanding buys in all of Bordeaux for well over a decade. The Decoster family has done a remarkable job in consistently producing some of the most enjoyable as well as complex and delicious wines of St. Emilion. The property is not small, with about 55 acres of vineyard. In 2013 yields were absurdly low, at 17 hectoliters per hectare.