Beausejour Duffau-Lagarrosse 2015 (6x75cl)
This is extraordinary. There has never been a wine like this here since the famous 1990 or underrated 1989. Violets, flowers, stones and limestone. Oyster-shell undertones. Full-bodied, muscular and so structured. A phenomenal wine that reminds me of the great Bordeaux of the 1950s. Try in 2026.
From a bottle purchased here in the United States, the 2015 Beausejour Duffau-Lagarrosse is a wine that should be purchased by the case (which is what I intend to do). This incredible blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc offers sensational purity in its crème de cassis, blueberry, graphite, lead pencil, licoice and forest floor-driven aromas and flavors. This is a big, rich, opulent wine, yet it has awesome purity and focus, with a distinct minerality keeping it fresh, focused and lively on the palate. Possessing ripe, sweet tannin, an inherent elegance and purity, perfect balance, and an awesome finish, this incredible Saint-Emilion is unquestionably one of the wines of the vintage. Do not miss it.
Review Date: 27th December 2017
One of the undisputed stars of the vintage, the 2015 Beauséjour Héritiers Duffau-Lagarrosse is dark, brooding and explosive to its core. The essence of super-ripe dark cherry, plum, graphite, crushed rocks, gravel, smoke and incense infuses a dramatic, sweeping Saint-Émilion endowed with superb power and intensity. Sumptuous, spectacularly rich and also massively structured, the 2015 is going to need at least a decade to come into its own. Those lucky enough to find it are in for a treat, as the 2015 is a total stunner. Nicolas Thienpont and his team hit a number of home runs in 2015, including at Beauséjour Héritiers Duffau-Lagarrosse, where both wines are simply great. Tasted two times with consistent notes.
Rich, tight, powerful and silky - an extremely accomplished wine in a great vintage. It's big but in control, with sweeping notes of liquorice and dark chocolate. It needs time to soften, but holds all the cards.
The 2015 Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarosse is a major surprise, far better than it showed just 12 months ago. There is a superb bouquet, very floral and mineral driven, a mixture of red/black fruit that soars from the glass. The palate is very well defined with supple tannin, silky, crisp and focused with a fine bead of acidity, and wonderful tension on the finish. This is a great 2015 from Nicolas Thienpont and his team. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting.
Reviewer Name: Neal Martin
Review Date: 9th July 2019
This has some sizzle, with roasted mesquite and ebullient red licorice notes out front, as well as steak to match, featuring a core sporting ample crushed cherry, red currant and plum fruit flavors. Light tea and chalk threads skitter through the finish, where the fruit echoes nicely. This has grown a bit since the barrel tasting. Best from 2023 through 2040.
Review Date: 31st March 2018
The 2015 Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse) is a blend of 90% Merlot picked between 25 September and 5 October, 10% Cabernet Franc picked on 5 and 12 October. It was cropped at 34 hl/ha. It has a very intense, quite opulent bouquet, just like the 2015 Pavie-Macquin from barrel, with fig-tinged red cherry fruit, hints of kirsch and glycerin. The palate likewise shows more refinement and class, the tannins fine and the acidity well judged. It has a fresh finish, though it just needs to muster a touch more tension and sense of energy right on the finish. Let's see what happens during its élevage, because it has the materials to turn into a very fine Saint Emilion.
Drinking Window: 2022 - 2045
Reviewer Name: Neal Martin
Review Date: 28th April 2016