2018 Fleurie Clos Vernay
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Tasting notes
Aromas of cherries, raspberries and plums mingle with hints of burning embers and potpourri in a deep and complex bouquet that introduces the 2018 Fleurie Clos Vernay. Medium to full-bodied, deep and multidimensional, it's layered and succulent, with an ample core of fruit, lively acids and powdery structuring tannins. The inherent charm and suppleness of the vintage lends this considerable appeal out of the gate, but like all the Lafarge-Vial wines, it's really built for a bit of bottle age. This sheltered, southeast-facing site is defined by decomposed granite and quartz soils.
Critic scores
Average Score
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
The 2018 Fleurie Clos Vernay has an intense bouquet, more floral than the other cuvées; iris flower develops with aeration, along with hints of violet. The palate is succulent on the entry and delivers a little more sapidity than the La Joie du Palais. Grips gently toward the nicely structured, persistent finish.
The clos is 1.3 ha (3.2 acres). On granite and quartz. This sample was from a bottle that had been under Coravin for a week and the bottle was half empty so I was not sure about the condition of the wine. Bottled. Unlike the other Lafarge Vial wines, I was not able to retaste this in London in January 2020 so this is my original note from tasting the wine in Burgundy in November 2019. Very ripe on the nose. Is this the sample? A touch raisiny. Chewy black cherries. Deep, firm, structured but the fruit seems just a little too ripe. (JH)