Château Chasse-Spleen 2010

A beautiful effort from Chasse-Spleen, this dense purple wine exhibits plenty of black currant and black cherry fruit with some licorice, roasted herbs and forest floor. Medium to full-bodied and supple, the final blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 45% Merlot has produced a fleshy, succulent style of Chasse-Spleen to drink over the next 15+ years.

Very supple and refined, with a crumpled velvet feel to the smoldering bay, tobacco and mulled spice hints surrounding the core of steeped plum and blackberry fruit. Flashes of cedar and sandalwood hang through the fine-grained finish. Rustic and lovely. Drink now through 2017. 25,000 cases made.

The 2010 Chasse-Spleen offers attractive blackberry, briary, cedar and pinecone aromas on the Pauillac-inspired nose. Good intensity here. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, a fine thread of acidity, and another graphite-infused, quite sharp finish. Very fine. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.

Bright black and red berries, spice box, herb and wood on the nose; on the palate, the wine sits on the fresh side, balancing sweetness and tartness within the style spectrum.

Dark garnet, fairly dense at the core, ruby rim. Direct, appealing red-cherry bouquet, medium intensity. On the palate very juicy, with a seamless flow where the usually more prominent tannins seem to hide. Somehow nice, but given the label one would expect considerably more. (16/20). 12: Bright garnet-ruby. The bouquet shows floral contours, the fruit feels restrained and slightly earthy, with medium intensity. The palate follows the same, rather lightly built style: surprisingly fine and accessible, seemingly tamed, which comes at the expense of its power and future potential. Where have the great Chasse-Spleen years gone?

Slender, floral bouquet, red berries, wood, vanilla. Light, dry palate with little aromatics, light fruit, austere finish. 16/20 2016 - 2025

Refined, elegant nose preserving lovely fruit, with notes of blackberry and blackcurrant, and a floral touch. Flavorful palate with crunchy tannins.

Supple and dense, fairly tannic, with good precision, not very dense.

Beautiful aromatic nose, fresh, ripe and refined. Delicately rounded palate, juicy, flavorful, with a lovely taste and fine tannins. Very pleasant.

A wine with wonderfully fresh and perfumed aromas of crushed flowers and berries. Full-bodied, with super integrated tannins and a silky-textured finish. This is refined and very pretty. Better than 2009. Drink or hold.

90-92 All structure and tannin over the austere black fruits. The wine at this stage is powered by its texture rather than the fruit.