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Winemaker Description 

A wine of great elegance. Pale yellow colour with greenish hints. White flower aromas are detected on the nose. On the palate, the wine is soft, round, well balanced, with good stuffing. The fruit flavours are enhanced by intense mineral notes, evolving towards slightly smoky tones. A beautiful aftertaste.

Quick Expert Summary - Vintage 2022

 🍇 Jasper Morris (Inside Burgundy) 92 Points Described the fruit as having a refined character and complexity, with a savory red berry note, plenty of energy, and good acidity.

🍷 Vinous (Neal Martin) 91 Points Noted a well-defined bouquet with black cherries and wild strawberry fruit; the palate is medium-bodied, smooth and sensual toward the finish.

📜 Burghound (Allen Meadows) 90 PointsPraised the attractively spicy nose and the "slightly better verve" on the palate, which finishes with fine-grained tannins.

✨ Wine Spectator (Bruce Sanderson) 90 Points Found it to be a tangy red with spicy cherry, pomegranate, and blood orange flavors, calling it nicely integrated and juicy.

Expert Review - Vintage 2022

Allen Meadows writes:  An attractively spicy nose freely offers up aromas of dark pinot fruit, Savigny-style earth, violet and an interesting hint of white pepper. There is slightly better verve suffusing the lightly stony middleweight flavors that also possess a caressing but punchy mouthfeel on the lingering finale that is noticeably finer thanks to the fine-grained tannins. This too could be approached young though at least a few years of cellaring should be beneficial.  - Burghound 90

Bruce Sanderson writes:  A tangy red, this features spicy cherry, pomegranate, blood orange and toasty oak flavors. Nicely integrated, with a whisper of dusty tannins lining the finish. This is juicy, with the fruit resonating on the aftertaste. Best from 2027 through 2040.   - Wine Spectator 90

Neal Martin writes:  The 2022 Savigny-lès-Beaune Les Lavières 1er Cru has a well-defined bouquet with black cherries and wild strawberry fruit, pure and refined. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent ripe red fruit and light pastille notes, smooth and sensual towards the finish. Give this three or four years in bottle.  - Vinous 91

Expert Review - Vintage 2023

Vinous 93 Points by Joaquín Hidalgo writes 93 Points | The 2023 Clio is composed of 70% Monastrell and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon from Jumilla. It was aged for 23 months in French and American oak barrels. Recently bottled, the oak is at the forefront but will integrate. The wine opens with plum, soft herbal notes and blackberry. Intense with fruit complexity, the palate is creamy, flavorful and delicate in tannins, finishing with a touch of oak that will meld with time.

Winemaker Description 

The wine exhibits a glass-coating opaque purple color. The nose is expressive with pain grille, underbrush, brier, minerality, blueberry and blackberry fruit. On the palate is a plush, opulent wine with great density, savory flavors, and a lengthy finish.

The Bodegas El Nido winery is located in the Valle de La Aragona, inside the Murcia district of Jumilla. The vineyards are 76.8 acres of very old Monastrell vines (also known as Matar or Mourvdre) all vaso trained and oriented northeast, and 28.8 acres of 30-year old Cabernet Sauvignon vines on north facing hills. The vineyards have a foot deep layer of chalky stones over substrata of sandy soil. The Bodegas El Nido is a collaboration of the Gil Family and winemaker Chris Ringland, one of the best Australian enologists.

A blend of 70% Monastrell and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Aged 24 months French & American oak.

Memo Summary Notes

The Bodegas El Nido "Clio" 2023 is a powerhouse red from the Jumilla region of Spain. Created through a collaboration between the Gil family and legendary Australian winemaker Chris Ringland, it is famous for its "maximalist" style—intense, high-alcohol, and deeply oaked.

This wine will overwhelm delicate dishes. Pair it with heavy-hitters like venison, pepper-crusted ribeye, or wild boar stew.

Pomerol That Delivers Right Bank Richness and Aromatic Extravagance

Château Vieux Maillet is a small, highly regarded estate in Pomerol — the celebrated Right Bank appellation that produces some of Bordeaux’s most opulent and sought-after Merlot-based wines. The 2019 Vieux Maillet comes from an exceptional vintage across Bordeaux and delivers the hallmark Pomerol profile: succulent, aromatic, and richly textured, with the depth and fine balance to drink beautifully now or develop further through the decade.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2019 

• Vinous — 94 pts: "Aromatic, effusive and charming right out of the gate. Succulent dark cherry, plum, mocha, chocolate, espresso and licorice lend striking aromatic nuance. There’s plenty of depth and fine balance to this decidedly extroverted Pomerol."
• Wine Enthusiast — 92 pts: "Superripe Merlot gives a wine that is succulent, rich, and densely packed with balanced blackberry fruits and solid tannins. The wine’s layers of ripeness promise great things. Drink from 2025."
• James Suckling — 92 pts: "Grilled herbs, iron, damp earth and subtle sweet spices on top of ripe plums, berries, potpourri and cooked grapefruit. Juicy and medium-bodied with round tannins and a fresh, composed finish of excellent length. Quite appealing for early drinking."

Producer Notes

Deep garnet-purple in color with well-expressed notes of black cherries, fresh blackberries, and black raspberries with suggestions of dried Mediterranean herbs, dark chocolate, eucalyptus, and cracked black pepper. Medium to full-bodied with vibrant black fruits, ripe rounded tannins, and a peppery lift on the finish.

Vineyard & Provenance

• Blend: Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon
• Appellation: Pomerol AOC, Bordeaux, France
• Producer: Château Vieux Maillet
• Vintage: 2019
• Size: 750ml

Food Pairings

A classic Right Bank pairing — exceptional with roasted duck, lamb rack, beef tenderloin, truffle dishes, and aged Comté or Brie de Meaux.

Expert Reviews

98 Points Wine Enthusiast | This firmly structured wine with its high percentage of Merlot is powerful and dense. The bold black fruits and perfumed density are impressive.

97+ Points Jeb Dunnuck | A clear step up over the 2019, the 2020 Château Troplong Mondot is mostly Merlot yet includes 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc, all of which was raised in 65% new French oak, with the balance in once-used barrels. The level of purity and finesse here is remarkable, and it reveals a deep ruby/purple hue as well as incredible aromatics of cassis, ripe black cherries, graphite, gunpowder, and spring flowers. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has building, perfectly ripe tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish. Certainly light years away from the riper, more opulent style of the 2000's, the wines today under consultant Thomas Duclos are much more about finesse and elegance. While I certainly miss the sexy, riper style of the past, there is no denying the incredible quality from this château today. 

97 Points Robert Parker | The 2020 Troplong Mondot is composed of 85% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc, harvested from 4th September and lasting for about three weeks. The pH is 3.53, the IPT (tannin index) is 75 and the alcohol is 14.5%. Opaque purple-black colored, it opens with a vivacious burst of black fruits—stewed plums, baked blackberries and boysenberries—giving way to a fragrant undercurrent of licorice, ground cloves, cinnamon stick and lilacs, with a touch of bouquet garni. The full-bodied palate is chock-full of plump, juicy black fruits and savory sparks, framed by fantastically ripe, fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing long and opulent. 

97 Points James Suckling | A soft and round red with plum and milk chocolate. Hazelnuts. Full-bodied and layered. Juicy. Hints of sea salt. Power is there. Turns firm and vivid. So attractive now. Savory. Needs three to four years to open.

93 Points Decanter | This sets out its stall as a wine from a specific plot of pure limestone soils straight away, and this is a second wine to savour. As with last year, this is a masterclass in the impact of this particular soil type, with a bright violet colour, juicy blueberry fruits and touches of redcurrant. It has a tingling finish with a whoosh of salinity that gives tension and balance. 30% aged in barrels, the rest stays in stainless steel. 3.53pH. Still 100% Merlot as last year, but that will probably change in 2021 when some Cabernet Franc should be added. Not sold as an En Primeur, the 2018 has just been released onto the market. September 4 was the first day of picking.

Winemaker Description

A blend of 70% Monastrell and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged 24 months French & American oak. The wine exhibits a glass-coating opaque purple color.

The nose is expressive with pain grille, underbrush, brier, minerality, blueberry and blackberry fruit. On the palate is a plush, opulent wine with great density, savory flavors, and a lengthy finish.

Expert Reviews - 2022 Release 

James Suckling writes 99 Points | Sweet-berry, walnut, licorice and violet aromas that follow through to a full body with round, chewy tannins that are polished and beautiful. Notes of iron, too. The tannins are broad and mouth filling, giving a caressing and exciting texture on the palate. If you give this a year to two to soften, it will deliver even greater richness and flavor. A blend of 2008, 2010 and 2011. Great after 2023.

Luis Gutiérrez of the The Wine Advocate writes 98 Points | The NV Único Reserva Especial 2022 Release is a blend of wines from 2008, 2010 and 2011, mostly Tinto Fino with some Cabernet Sauvignon mixing lots from the Único wines from those years. In the past, the blend was older vintages, but now it's wines that are around the same age as the Único. It has the complexity of mixing terroirs, vintages and grapes with parameters very similar to Único, 14.5% alcohol and good balance with a pH of 3.83 and 5.4 grams of acidity (measured in tartaric acid per liter). In the blend, they look for keeping the style of past blends, combining the more aged notes of the older wines and the freshness of the younger ones. I was very pleasantly surprised by the performance of this Reserva Especial, which seems to be going back to the character of the blends from yesteryear, with more finesse, elegance and nuance. This is perfumed, elegant, harmonious and balanced. It has very fine, already polished tannins and integrated acidity. 2008 and 2010 are cooler years, and they seem to give the blend this freshness and elegance. It has all the components, and especially the balance between all of them, to age nicely in bottle. 16,961 bottles and 201 magnums were filled in June 2018.

Winemaker Description 

Unico Reserva Especial bears witness to the past, it pays homage to the history of Spanish wine and their traditions. A non-vintage wine combining the balance between the best vintages and harvests, it faithfully reflects the magic of a legendary land. Unico Reserva Especial 2022 is a blend of the 2008, 2010, and 2011 vintages and a blend of 95 % Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) and 5 % Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is suitable for drinking now, but it can be aged for up to 40-60 years, if stored in the ideal conditions. It offers an infinite complexity that is gradually revealed, in every sip, the palate immensely silky and elegant. A true work of art!

Winemaker Description

The color of the wine is dark red, almost black with blueish hues. Very expressive on the nose with red fruits and black fruit flavors. A good swirl in the glass release a large range of flavors and spice. Star anise, licorice, as well as empyreumatic notes and flint stones. It goes very wide and powerful on the palate at first, then well-defined structure and smoothness of the wine gives all its balance, fresh and full body. The length is highlighted by a great tannic structure. On the palate, it is highly aromatic with a great fruit expression melted with soft spices, blond tobacco leaf, licorice and graphite pencil like notes.

Expert Reviews

Robert Parker 100 Points | A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot aging in 60% new barriques, the very deep purple-black colored 2020 Smith Haut Lafitte makes an impactful entrance, opening with flamboyant notes of blackcurrant pastilles, chocolate-covered cherries and molten licorice, leading to nuances of ground cloves, woodsmoke, crushed rocks and dusty soil. The medium to full-bodied palate bursts with opulent black fruit preserves and shimmering mineral sparks, framed by exquisitely ripe and fantastically firm tannins and seamless freshness, finishing with epically long-lasting earthy and savory layers. This is the singular voice of Smith Haut Lafitte at its finest, and wow-oh-wow is it worth a listen. This 2020 has an alcohol of 14.5% with a pH of 3.65. The tannins this year were a little higher than 2018 and 2019. A little less than a third of production went into this grand vin. (2020).

Jeb Dunnuck 100 Points | Absolutely pure gold and reminding me of the 2009 (or is it the 2010?), the 2020 Château Smith Haut Lafitte sports a dense purple hue to go with incredible aromatics of blackberries, blueberries, scorched earth, wood smoke, and acacia flowers. One of the most concentrated, rich, and sexy wines in the vintage, this massive and extraordinarily opulent 2020 shows the vintage's pure, elegant profile yet backs it up with sensational levels of fruit and texture. Based on 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, and the balance Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it already offers pleasure given its wealth of fruit, but it deserves 7-8 years of bottle age and will evolve for 40-50 years. Not enough can be said about the quality of these wines. Bravo to Florence and Daniel Cathiard, as well as to director Fabien Teitgen, for another incredible achievement.

James Suckling 99 Points | Extremely fresh and deep in the nose with raspberry and blackcurrant character, as well as stone, fresh green tobacco and ink. Full-bodied with a dense center palate and gorgeous fine yet steely tannins. It calms down at the end with berries, citrus and some lavender. Salty at the end. Very minerally. Flinty. From organically grown grapes. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 4% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot. (2020).

Wine Enthusiast 98 Points | This is a very fine wine, packed with tannins that are rich and suspended in the wine with its smoky edge and ripe blackberry fruits. The wine is direct in its fine, fragrant freshness and in its texture that gives power and concentration. Obviously for long-term aging. (2020).

Decanter 97 Points | Powerful on the attack, dense and concentrated at first then brighter on the retro-olfaction with layers of spice, liquorice and flowers. Intense but beautifully precise, with iris and peony aromatics coming in strongly as it opens in the glass. A ton of nuance and complexity, really takes its time, delivering a masterclass in restrained Pessac glamour. Average yields 30hl/ha for the reds. 1% Petit Verdot completes the blend. 60% new oak. (2020).

Wine Spectator 95 Points | Exotic and lush in feel, with well-steeped plum, boysenberry and blackberry fruit flavors rolling through, scored with hints of espresso crema, dark tobacco and black licorice along the way. Very polished in feel, but with a late flicker of savory and a subtle tug of earth to keep this honest in the end. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2026. (2020).

Producer Description 

The wine is a crimson-hued garnet red. The nose reveals red berry fruit aromas combined with delicate floral notes of peony and fresh mint. A dense and muscular attack leads into a full-bodied mid-palate whose juicy and expressive substance is underlined by well-rounded, silky tannins. The long and balanced finish lingers on notes of spice, especially white pepper.

Expert Reviews - 2021 Vintage

James Suckling 95 Points | This is surprisingly full-bodied and round, reflecting the warmth and sunny exposure of the vineyard around the chateau. Tangy and vivid with currants, fresh flowers and plenty of energy and length. Delicate yet ripe. 77% cabernet sauvignon, 19.5% merlot, 3% cabernet franc and 0.5% petit verdot. Needs two or three years to come together completely. Drink after 2027.

Jeb Dunnuck 91-93 Points | The second wine of this great estate, the 2021 Le Petit Mouton De Mouton Rothschild checks in as 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19.5% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, brought up in 50% new barrels. It has plenty of class and charm, with pure Cabernet notes of cassis, graphite, tobacco, and damp earth. These carry to a medium-bodied, balanced, elegant, seamless wine with fine tannins, integrated oak, and a great finish.

Vinous 90-92 Points |  Representing 40% of the total volume, a little more than usual, the 2021 Le Petit-Mouton, is aged in 50% new oak. A very Cabernet nose with conspicuous graphite scents infusing the black fruit, a little Earl Grey in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with a fleshy opening, not amazingly complex but well balanced with fine tannins and just a pinch of black pepper on the finish. Classic in style, it should give 15-20 years of drinking pleasure.

Decanter 92 Points | Beautifully fragrant strawberries and red cherries, just so perfumed and appealing, really a very lovely nose drawing you in. An excellent Petit Mouton in 2021; serious intensity here but also such a liveliness as well as creaminess. It has weight and layers while having fruit intensity and a core of aromatics. There's a softness and delicacy in terms of the tannins and frame - beguiling - but a real base of concentrated blue, red and black fruits - strawberries, red cherries and blackcurrants. You get the stony tones and the clove on the finish but this feels round, expansive and approachable. It's uber glamorous, still with freshness and lift. A gorgeous wine with lots going on! 0.5% Petit Verdot completes the blend. 3.73pH. 14% press wine.

Wine Advocate 89-91 Points | Since Mouton-Rothschild itself this year derives exclusively from the two plateaus that always make up the core of the blend, the 2021 Le Petit Mouton benefits from the inclusion of parcels that often make it into the grand vin. Exhibiting aromas of crème de cassis, mint, cigar wrapper, violets and espresso roast, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and fleshy, with a rich core of fruit, powdery tannins, succulent acids and a persistent finish. Characterful and beautifully made, I wonder if I'm being a little severe with my score?