With an enticing amber gold colour, the nose of this skin fermented cuvée is still a little shy. Some ripe pear and peach shows with a little aeration.
The fruit feels very ripe, and the acidity is perilously low. But the main issue with this wine at the moment is the significant influence from new oak. There’s a marked wood shavings/sawdust character which masks the fruit.
There are fine phenolics on the finish, which help to mitigate the slight lack of freshness.
The fruit was sourced from some of Bertrand’s best vineyards – he has a lot to choose from! The price point does seem quite crazy, at EUR 149. Admittedly, the packaging, the new oak regime and so forth all signpost the ultra premium market that this wine is destined for.
It is not for me, I have to say.