Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
An elegant nose of flowers, plums, red berries and cedar. It’s medium-bodied with silky texture. Shows balance and finesse, supported by polished tannins and a pretty drive. Lovely all around. Try after 2023.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, the 2018 Dalem has a deep garnet-purple color and compelling notes of blackberry preserves, wild blueberries and ripe, juicy black plums, with hints of dark chocolate, licorice and black olives. The full-bodied palate (15% alcohol) appears bright and fresh with the lively black fruits framed by soft, velvety tannin's, finishing long and savory. Nicely done!
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Wine Spectator
Graceful in feel, this delivers cassis and bitter plum notes infused with bergamot and floral hints that all carry through a refined, mineral-tinged finish. A charming, understated wine. Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Beautiful cassis, violets, and orange blossom notes emerge from the 2018 Château Dalem. It has a certain modern style, delivering classy oak, yet it has good minerality on the palate, medium to full-bodied richness, ripe tannins, and a great finish. This ripe yet balanced, lively 2018 has lots to love and is going to keep for a decade.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Home of the very first remarkable Right Bank wines, dating back to the 1730s, Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac actually retained more fame than Pomerol well into the 19th century. Today these wines represent some of Bordeaux’s best hidden gems.
Fronsac is a very small region at an unusually high elevation compared to other Bordeaux appellations. Its vineyards unroll along the oak-dotted hills bordering the river’s edge, making it perhaps Bordeaux’s prettiest and most majestic countryside.
Merlot covers 60% of the vineyard acreage; the rest of the vines are Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac appellations are limited to the higher land where soils are predominantly limestone and sandstone. Lower vineyards along the Dordogne River mainly qualify for Bordeaux AOC status
The best Fronsac are deeply concentrated in ripe red and black berry; they have a solid mineral backbone and are rich and plush on the finish.