Jan de Weerd

9.2

Very smooth. Dark ripe cherry and blue berry. Suttle, soft finish. — 6 years ago

with RoAnne and Tammy

Mark

9.2

At Shanghai Club — 7 years ago

Jeanette Bangs

9.3

Une rétrospective de la Belle Époque — 7 years ago

Andrew Malcolm

9.2

Really nice with some fruitiness- light for a Saint Emilion — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

I’m opening my last bottle of the 03 Larcis Ducasse after recently reading a couple of professional write ups about the wines fruit fading and to drink up. I did not find that to be the case w/ my last bottle. I found the wine to be around it’s peak form with another 5 years plus ahead. On the nose; menthol, eucalyptus, ripe; dark cherries, cherries, blackberries, plum, poached & candied strawberries, notes of blue fruits, black raspberries, cherry cola, touch herbaceous; sage & bay leaf, limestone & rich, moist, black, turned earth, crushed dry rocks, graphite, dry soil/clay with dry & fresh dark florals. The body is medium full. Tannins are 75-80% resolved. The length, structure, tension & balance are right where I’d expect them to be and are quite enjoyable. The palate is very similar to the nose. Menthol, eucalyptus, ripe; dark cherries, cherries, blackberries, plum, poached & candied strawberries, notes of blue fruits, black raspberries, cherry cola, touch herbaceous; sage & bay leaf, limestone & rich, moist, black, turned earth, crushed dry rocks, dry & very grippy, edgy minerals, Montecristo cigar, graphite, dry soil/clay with dry & fresh dark florals. The acidity is lovely and the long finish is well balanced with an even tug of war between fruit & earth with the dry earth dominate on the long set. Photos of; of their great southern exposed sunny hillside vineyard, the old craved stone entrance and Nicolas Thienpont & Stephane Derenoncourt. Producer notes & history...Chateau Larcis Ducasse began during the days of the ancient Romans, who valued the best hillside vineyards in the area. The early part of the modern era for Larcis Ducasse begins in 1893, when Henri Raba bought the Saint Emilion vineyard. After Henri Raba passed away in 1925, his wife and son Andre Raba continued managing Larcis Ducasse. His niece, Helene Gratiot Alphandery, inherited the property in 1941. She managed Chateau Larcis Ducasse until 1990. Then her son, Jacques-Olivier Gratiot took control of the property after she passed away and he remains in charge today. Chateau Larcis Ducasse remains the property of the Gratiot Alphandery family today. Prior to 2003, it had been years since the wines of Chateau Larcis Ducasse were prized by Bordeaux wine lovers. The wine had fallen out of favor, due to a lack of attention and effort. That changed in 2002 when they hired Saint Emilion consultants, Nicolas Thienpont and Stephane Derenoncourt to turn things around and manage the estate. One of the first improvements at the property suggested by them was to create a new drainage system. The next step was to change harvesting practices. Prior to 2002, the grapes were often picked too early and over a very short duration of 2 to 3 days. Now, the harvest takes place when the fruit is ripe and picking can take as long as 2 to 3 weeks. Starting with the 2005 vintage, all work in the vineyards moved to 100% organic farming methods. The 10.85 hectare St. Emilion vineyard of Larcis Ducasse is planted to 78% Merlot and 22% Cabernet Franc. This shows a slight change in the vineyard, as more Cabernet Franc has been added to the plantings since 2003. The vineyard is located just around the bend in the road from Chateau Pavie. In fact, their vines but up against each other. They are surrounded by more good producers. To the south, is Chateau Canon La Gaffeliere and La Gaffeliere, and as you move north, Chateau Troplong Mondot and Chateau Pavie. The terroir of Chateau Larcis Ducasse is a mixture of soils. The vines on the top of plateau and the slopes have a south facing exposure. At the higher elevations on the plateau, the terroir is limestone, clay and chalk soils. As you travel further down the slopes towards the terraces, the terroir is a blend of chalky limestone, marl, sand, silt and clay soil. At the base of the slopes, you find sand and clay soils. On average the vines are 35 years of age. While the older plantings were done at a vine density of 6,600 vines per hectare, as the vineyard continues to be slowly replanted, the vine density is increasing with each subsequent replanting. The new plantings are being done at 7,500 vines per hectare. They are also using budwood obtained through selection massale. The yields are kept low at Larcis Ducasse. In 2009, the effective yields were only 25 hectoliters per hectare.To produce the wine of Chateau Larcis Ducasse, the grapes are whole berry fermented. The fruit is transported by gravity flow into traditional, cement tanks for fermentation. Cuvaison takes between 25-28 days. There are no pump overs. Pigeages are conducted during fermentation. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrel. The wine of Chateau Larcis Ducasse is then aged in 67% new, French oak barrels, which are mixed in size, between standard barrels and 500 liter French, oak casks. The wine is then aged for an average of 18 to 20 months in barrel before bottling. The production averages close to 4,000 cases depending on what the vintage gives. — 8 years ago

Ryan Carey

Founder Wine Confidential

9.4

Sensational! This was a rec from a Parisian wine store owner, who said he recently opened a bottle and was delighted. He did not disappoint. Obviously stored perfectly. Bursting with bright fruit (blueberry), and tastes of cassis and baking spices. With just enough of that Bordeaux-St Emilion earthiness to satisfy but please even the non-Bordeaux drinker — 9 years ago

Greg Hedrick

9.0

Nice bouquet. Lots of sediment but classic St. Emilion. — 11 years ago

Noel Lee

10

brought by Ee, at Ticino, Bermondsey Street — 12 years ago

John Van Trijp

9.6

Beautifully balanced multi-layered st. Emilion. No heat stress at all. WoW! — 6 years ago

Ekasit Poositranusorn

9.2

Big WOW! I tasted this wine in September 2018 at the event held by the French embassy at Central World in Bangkok, Thailand; the wine did not impress my tounge at all. However, I bought 2 bottles because a friend of mine imported it. Today (Jan 18, 2019), the wine tasted very delucious after 30 minutes of breathing. Very flavorfull of cherry, blackberry, plum, and tobacco together with soft tannins and silky & reasonable length on the finish. The color is intense but bright ruby red color with medium-to-full-weight which is goes well with medium & sexy acidity. Very good value, excellent balanced, and savory wine to pair well with medium spicy Thai dishes. — 7 years ago

Sarah Worner

9.3

Good to drink now, nice tannins, but could still use age — 7 years ago

Carol Sigman

9.1

Silky smooth sweet cherries and vanilla with a hint of espresso. One of the oldest vineyards in Saint Emilion. Call out to the man, lovingly called “The Boogeyman”, for the great Left Bank/Right Bank 2012 horizontal tasting recommendation this evening. — 7 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.1

Bought in 2001 by Florence & Dominique Decoster. Ch Fleur was promoted to "Saint-Emilion Grand cru classé" in 2006. I did a vertical ‘12, ‘13 & ‘14, check my notes on ‘14 for conclusion. A blend of 80% Merlot, 15% Cab Franc and 5% Cab Sauvignon, deep red with big ripe fruit aromas and gentle notes of floral. Blue & Black berry flavors, great mouthfeel delivers nice balance on structured soft tannins that could benefit with more time, lingering finish ending with smoky mineral notes. Will cellar Nicely! — 8 years ago

Alex Westphal

9.1

Noch zu tanninhaltig. — 8 years ago

with Gordon

Amanda Wilson

10

2009 vintage. Love. Syruppy and big! — 9 years ago

Lizette

9.3

Dads day so going back to the winery where my dad was the winemaker in 1979 👊🏻 Great but tannic finish. Needs to soften a bit over time. Wait a few years to drink — 9 years ago

K J

9.5

Deep and grapey. Smooth and dry. 20 bucks from Costco. A deal. Even better with air time — 10 years ago

Joe Lucca

9.5

Much lighter than I had expected. Awesome aromas; garrigue, camphor, capsicum, tobacco, black tea, leather. The palate is complex, giving off different flavors with each sip. Bright cherry, mushrooms, dusty earth, briar berry, green pepper, charcoal. Finishes with smoke and a nice touch of white pepper. Beautifully complex. All the elegance of a fully mature St. Emilion. — 10 years ago

with Diana

Enebro Avila

9.3

Comprado en St Emilion, tomado en casa — 11 years ago

Jeff Ryan

9.2

Bold as heck. — 6 years ago

"Odedi"

9.1

This very nice 22 year old Saint Emilion is still drinking nicely with lots of complexity and a gentle mouthfeel.

Showing blue and black fruits with lots of earth notes, dark coffee, forest floor, wood and earth.

Medium plus in body with medium plus acidity.

Nice length on the finish with round tannins and tangy cranberries.

Needs 90 minutes to open up properly.

A right bank Bordeaux off vintage, that is very yummy. That's a good score.

I've had the 2014 not too long ago, and it is worth putting it down for 15 years, especially if you get the 2015.

12.5% alcohol by volume.

91 points. — 7 years ago

Amanda B.

9.3

light- medium body, warming sensation when you sip, dry finish. would buy again. — 7 years ago

Juan Del Pueblo

9.1

Amsterdam, Netherland — 7 years ago

with IF

Antonio Claudio Tarre

9.2

I had a bottle of this wine a while ago and it was spectacular: 94pts. The second, which I drank a few weeks ago, was very good, but not as good as the first one, but still pretty decent: 90 pts. On average 92. A fine claret by the owners of Cheval Blanc. — 8 years ago

Jeff Budge

9.0

Nice Saint-Emilion Bordeaux, a bit grassy but still good. Be careful what you pair it with. — 8 years ago

Rich Mueller

9.3

Dry, smokey, cherry, cigar and light but balanced. Pretty nice. — 8 years ago

Collin Moody

9.1

Very chinon at first, Merlot is too dominate for my taste with air. Still kickass with some bavette. — 9 years ago

with Andie and James

Wendy Narby

9.1

Not easy to find but worth looking out for — 9 years ago

Bob Miniter

9.0

Beautiful deep garnet color. Spice and cedar nose. Fruit of cherry and plum with a late touch of earth. B — 10 years ago

Martine Loignon

9.5

Quoi de mieux qu'un St-Emilion 2003 grand cru classé rapporté de notre voyage dans le Sud-Ouest de la France pour défoncer l'année 2015 — 11 years ago