2015 Liber Pater
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Tasting notes
The 2015 Liber Pater is a wine I tasted from barrel many years ago and constitutes the last vintage matured in barrel. It has a pleasant nose with dark cherry and blueberry fruit and a hint of wild fennel and cedar, cohering nicely in the glass. The oak is actually neatly integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with a fine bead of acidity. Not complex but balanced, with a touch of bitterness on the finish that counterbalances the surprising richness that lends it a slightly Californian personality, not dissimilar to a fine Sonoma. Thoroughly enjoyable, even if the price is laughable.
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Neal Martin
Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider
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The 2015 Liber Pater is one of the most intriguing wines I tasted this year. Inspired by research that showed phylloxera had never reared its ugly head here, proprietor Loïc Pasquet decided to plant these parcels with ungrafted vines. Those plants are only five years old, and yet the wine shows considerable pedigree. A host of dark red stone fruits meld together, but it is the wine's textural depth and unctuousness that truly stand out. Liber Pater is clearly a work in progress, and yet the wines are already compelling.
The 2015 Liber Pater is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Petit Verdot, 1% Merlot and 5% of other varieties from certified organic vines picked between September 25 with the Merlot until October 20 with the Mancin. Yields were just 15 hectoliters per hectare. It has a very sensual bouquet that at the moment is driven by the new oak, although it does seem to be nicely integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with rounded tannin that make this soft, slightly powdery in the mouth. There is lush mulberry, red plum, Indian spices and a touch of Szechuan pepper towards the finish.