Wine of the Month - December 2021

Laguna Cellar Wine of the Month Selection for December 2021

• Champagne Barons de Rothschild 2010, Champagne, Rated 94 (James Suckling) - It was in 2005 that five members of the Rothschild family, from Châteaux Mouton Rothschild, Clarke and Lafite Rothschild, started a project in Champagne. They purchased an established Champagne house, Maison Prieur in Vertus, and had their first harvest that year. They made their first Blanc de Blancs vintage in 2006 and set up shop in Reims in 2007. Their aim? To make an “exceptional Champagne bearing the hallmark of a great vintage, on a par with the wines produced by the family in its celebrated châteaux.”  Frédéric Mairesse, the family’s representative in Reims, says: “This project is a kind of magical idea from the Rothschild family. It’s the first time that the three branches of the family come together and associate their know-how to give birth to a co-owned wine house. To gather them all, there was only one obvious and natural choice: Champagne! They are all Champagne lovers; they have always welcomed their guests with a glass of Champagne as a true symbol of conviviality and French art de vivre.” 
• Château Bouscaut 2015, Pessac-Léognan, Rated 92 (Lisa Perotti-Brown) - For oenophiles who love a no frills wine that is a great value – Château Bouscaut is the perfect choice.  This Cru Classés de Graves is managed by Sophie Lurton of the legendary Lurton family.  Sophie epitomizes the qualities of a humble vigneron and has a very hands-on approach when it comes to managing the property.  Whether she is crafting wine in the vat room or pouring and showing the wine at trade tastings, her devotion to this charming Graves estate is quite apparent.  Though the estate was relatively obscure throughout the majority of the ‘90s, scores of this humble property have been creeping up and praise continues to trickle in. In spite of the recent positive press, Château Bouscaut still remains relatively affordable, over-delivering in terms of value.
• Château Laroque 2018, Saint-Émilion, Rated 95-97 (Lisa Perotti-Brown) - Château Laroque is the largest estate in Saint-Émilion - coming in at an impressive 61-hectares (approximately, 150 acres).   Yet despite its formidable size, the viticultural team of this Grand Cru Classé property manages to produce excellent vintages on a yearly basis, garnering more critical acclaim with each passing year.  The 2018 was a particularly special vintage.  Starting this year, after being distributed on an exclusive basis for many years, the owners of Château Laroque decided to offer the wine through Bordeaux’s en primeur network.  Akin to the markets in financial assets, Place de Bordeaux is the marketplace where wine trading happens, bridging the gap between producers and buyers.  To sweeten the offer to buyers, Château Laroque priced its wine below where its quality would have fetched.  This not only left a good taste on the palate of the buyers, but also profit in their pocket.  Many of our Bordeaux futures customers have seen the value of their Laroque holdings double in less than two years.
• Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey 2017, Sauternes, Rated: 97 (Antonio Galloni) - In 2005, on the recommendation of his friend Count Stephan von Neipperg (Château Canon-la-Gaffelière and La Mondotte), Swiss entrepreneur Silvio Denz acquired Château Faugères. In 2014, he acquired Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey, one of the few Premiers Grands Crus Classés of 1855 and one of the oldest vineyards in Sauternes. Silvio Denz built his fortune in perfume business, and collected vintage perfume bottles designed by famed French glass artist René Lalique. He was such a fan of the Lalique style of glass art that he bought the French crystalware house Lalique S.A. It was only natural that he would decide to marry his passion for glass art with wine by introducing Lalique's art onto the bottles of his wines: both Faugères and Lafaurie-Peyraguey.

Champagne Barons de Rothschild 2010 - "Beautiful pale gold hue with crystalline reflections.  The first nose is very mineral and chalky with notes of citures fruit, fresh almonds and hazelnuts. The second nose then reveals notes of spices, tonka beans and nutmeg, underpinned by a loverly freshness.  After several minites, aromas of stone fruit, mocha and praline with pastry overtones start to come through " - The Tasting Book, Rating: 92, Drink: 2020-2035

Château Bouscaut 2015 -"Medium garnet-purple in color, the 2015 Bouscaut has an earth, tar and charcoal nose with a core of red and black currants and a waft of beef drippings. The medium-bodied palate has good intensity and depth with firm, grainy tannins, a lively backbone and great length." - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (2/21/2018, Interim Issue), Ratings: 92, Drink: 2019-2036

Château Laroque 2018 -"Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Laroque is a little closed to begin, slowly unfurling to reveal fragrant black cherries, wild blueberries and blackberry preserves scents with hints of crushed rocks, underbrush and violets plus a waft of Marmite toast. Full-bodied and jam-packed with bright, crunchy black and blue fruits, it has a firm line of ripe, fine-grained tannins and loads of freshness, finishing very long and layered. Impressive! Being aged in oak barriques, 50% new, the blend is 97% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc." - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (4/23/2019, Bordeaux 2018 Issue), Rating: 95-97 

Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey 2017 - "A wine of stunning beauty, the 2017 Lafaurie-Peyraguey is so remarkably vivid from the very first taste. All the elements simply fall into place effortlessly. Orchard fruit, tangerine, passion fruit mint and exotic floral overtones all grace this precise, wonderfully inviting Sauternes from Silvio Denz. Lafaurie-Peyraguey is pure and total finesse." - Antonio Galloni, Vinous, (March, 2020) Rating: 97, Drink: 2022-2037