Vinous – Neil Martin – 88/100
The 2023 Caillou Blanc Talbot was picked from August 30 to September 7 and matured in 40% new oak, with more bâtonnage than usual. It has a pretty bouquet with orchard fruit, touches of orange blossom and grapefruit thanks to the 71% Sauvignon Blanc. The palate is fresh on the entry: green apple mixed with pear and a dab of lemongrass, with decent length. This is very Graves-like this year. Drink it over the next four to five years.
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 92/100
The 2023 Blanc de Lynch-Bages, just bottled a week before this tasting, is terrific. Bright citrus peel, dried flowers, almond, lime and crushed rocks lend quite a bit of nuance. A dollop of Muscadelle adds tropical flair without overpowering the balance. This is very nicely proportioned.
Vinous – Neil Martin
The 2023 Les Arums de Lagrange was picked from 29 August. Light pear and Golden Delicious scents emerge on the nose. It’s quite pretty, if not the most complex white that you will find in the Médoc. The palate is balanced with white peach and Anjou pear and lightly spiced toward the finish. Drink it over the next two or three years.
65% Semillon en 35% Sauvignon Blanc. Het kasteel Chasse Spleen heeft een prestigieuze naam en produceert wijnen van uitzonderlijke klasse, die tot de beste van de Médoc behoren. De wijngaard strekt zich uit voornamelijk ten zuiden en ten oosten van het plateau van Grand Poujeaux. Voor de witte wijnen dateren de wijnstokken uit 1995. L’élevage is gedaan in houten vaten, waarvan de helft nieuw zijn.
Blanc de Chasse Spleen behoort tot de beste witte wijnen uit Bordeaux. Hij oogt helder en briljant. De neus is gedistingeerd met aroma’s van grapefruit en lychee op een achtergrond van lindebloesem. De smaak is mooi rond, toasty met een smeuiïg kantje.
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 90-92/100
The 2023 Pagodes de Cos d’Estournel Blanc is a very beautiful second wine. Lime, white flowers, mint, chalk, white pepper and tangerine peel lend notable vibrancy and freshness throughout. There’s good energy here, but the wine is clearly still coming together. The blend is 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Sémillon.
This shows real precision and sophistication. Tight and dense palate that is concentrated but not heavy, with intensity and minerality. Sea salt and white pepper at the end. This is really at the top level of dry white Bordeaux now. 70% sauvignon blanc and 30% semillon.
Vinous – Neil Martin 92-94/100
The 2023 Cos d’Estournel Blanc, a blend of 70% Sauvignon Blanc and 30% Sémillon, offers slightly more tropical notes on the nose than Les Pagodes, with a touch more depth–hints of orange blossom and honeysuckle. The palate is well balanced with tangerine and lime, fine acidity, notable focus and a bright and tensile finish. This is another delicious white. It will be difficult to resist in its youth.
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 91-93/100
The 2023 Cos d’Estournel Blanc is quite powerful and not especially aromatic today. At this stage, it is mostly the wine’s body that makes an impression. The 2023 has good depth, but it is clearly not expressive today. It will be interesting to see what time brings.
Le Clos Floridène, à Pujols sur Ciron, dans les Graves, a été progressivement constitué par Denis et Florence Dubourdieu depuis 1982, grâce à des achats successifs de parcelles, situées sur les meilleurs terroirs viticoles. Le nom du cru est d’ailleurs forgé grâce aux deux prénoms de ses fondateurs.
Le Clos Floridène Blanc possède le caractère particulier des vins blancs issus des grands terroirs calcaires : couleur d’or vert, arôme intense aux notes fruitées de pêche blanche, citron, pamplemousse, nuances minérales, grillées, toastées. Saveurs puissantes et fraîches du fruit dans tout son éclat, densité et structure d’un grand vin blanc. Il peut se conserver au moins 10 ans.
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 91-93/100
The 2023 Clos Floridène Blanc is a heady dry white from the Dubourdieu family. Tangerine peel, chamomile, apricot and honeyed notes build in a creamy, layered white that shows the richer side of the year. Readers will find a voluptuous, extroverted wine that will shine at its brightest at the dinner table.
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 90-92/100
The 2023 Couhins Blanc is a bit dense and textured in this vintage. Apricot, white flowers, mint and lemon confit build nicely, supported by a phenolic-like structure that adds character.
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 87-88/100
The 2023 Carbonnieux Blanc is bright, chiseled and full of Sauvignon Blanc character. I find it a bit austere in feel, though. It lacks just that little bit of mid-palate texture that could take it to the next level.
Vinous – Neil Martin – 91-93/100
The 2023 Olivier Blanc has an attractive bouquet—one of the best I have encountered from this estate in recent years. It flaunts engaging green apple, Anjou pear and grass clipping scents. There is real energy and class here. The palate is well balanced with a finely tuned, slightly peachy entry. Lively and fresh, with a touch of lemon sherbet on the finish, it doesn’t quite have the complexity of say, the La Louvière or Smith Haut-Lafitte Blanc, but it’s difficult not to love.
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate – 93-95/100
Vinous – Neil Martin – 91-93/100
The 2023 L’Esprit de Chevalier Blanc offers crisp sea-spray scents on the nose, complemented by Granny Smiths and light kiwi notes. The palate is very well balanced with a keen line of acidity. Notably saline on the entry, it possesses impressive depth, turning quite spicy with touches of white pepper on the persistent finish. This is one of those Deuxième Vins where you think: “Cor blimey…what’s the Grand Vin like?”
Vinous – Neil Martin – 94-96/100
The 2023 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc was picked from August 28 to September 6 at 45hL/ha. It’s a blend of 70% Sauvignon Blanc and 30% Sémillon. This has wonderful purity on the nose, revealing scents of lime, green apple and crushed stone—one of the most precise I have encountered at this early stage. The palate is well balanced with a fine bead of acidity that lends this white Pessac-Léognan superb focus. There’s real intensity here, building with a sense of nascent confidence toward the mineral, almost slate-like finish. Very long and tender, this is a white Domaine de Chevalier from the top drawer.
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 94-96/100
The 2023 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc is one of the best dry whites of the year. Creamy and expansive, with terrific brightness, this exudes balance. Citrus confit, white pepper, mint, almond, pear and crushed rocks are some of the notes that build as the 2023 shows off its pedigree. I expect it will offer exceptional drinking for the next several decades. What else is new?
Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 93-95/100
The 2023 Pape Clément Blanc is another strong vintage for a wine that has been in transition for a few years now. There’s still plenty of textural richness in the Blanc, but less of the tropical character and flamboyance of some past years. Orange peel, mint, dried herbs, chamomile and crushed flowers open gracefully. All the elements are so well balanced. Tasted three times.
Vinous – Antonio galloni – 90-92/100
The 2023 Malartic-Lagravière Blanc is a seriously beautiful wine. Explosive aromatics meld into a core of orchard and citrus fruits. Bright acids pull it all together. I especially admire the wine’s inner perfume and balance. This is one of the better dry whites of the year. A kiss of French oak lingers. Tasted two times.
