Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Sweet-berry, bark and black-olive aromas follow through to a medium to full body with chewy tannins and a lightly austere finish. Some crushed-stone undertones. Try after 2023.
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Wine Spectator
Focused and fresh in feel, with some bouncy energy as well to the mix of damson plum, red currant and bing cherry compote flavors. Late floral flurry on the finish adds charm. Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2030.
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Jeb Dunnuck
A blend of 95% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc, the 2018 Château De La Huste reveals a dense purple/ruby color as well as impressive red and black berry fruits, notes of smoked herbs and chocolate, medium-bodied richness, and a plush, soft, undeniably delicious texture. It's ready to go yet should keep for 7-8 years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 de la Huste gives up earthy scents of tilled soil, fungi and mossy bark over a core of warm red and black plums and blackberry compote. Full and softly textured, with mouth-coating blackberry preserves, it gives a fragrant earth-laced finish.
Barrel Sample: 88-90
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.