Winemaker Notes
The 2024 vintage is Olympian, as they never wavered in their efforts, and Brilliant for its precision, purity, aromatic depth, freshness, balance, elegance, complexity, and exceptionally long, fresh finish. On the palate, the wine is fruity, elegant, fresh, refined, and silky. It reveals notes of blackberry, crushed blackcurrant, wild raspberry, small red berries, and fresh blueberry. As it evolves, the wine remains brilliant, rich, full-bodied, pure, and chiseled, retaining its mineral framework with finesse and elegance. The velvety texture merges with a joyful energy and sapidity. A remarkably long and fresh finish enhances its irresistible appeal and gourmandize.
Blend: 80% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc
This wine does not include the blanket 10% tariff imposed in April 2025. When the wines are shippable in fall of 2027, customers will have the option to pay any tariff in place at the time or to keep their wines stored in a temperature-controlled facility free of charge in France.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Very good depth. Perfumed aromas of berries, flowers, sweet blueberries, grapefruit and minerals. Very pretty, with reactive, fine-grained, chalky tannins. The texture and freshness are incredible, with lots of vibration. Medium-bodied with energy and juiciness. Quite long.
Barrel Sample: 96-97 -
Decanter
Soft and silky, this is fun and fresh, so pure and crystalline with focussed red strawberry and raspberry fruit that has both a crunch and salty edge. High acidity gives the vibrancy but this also has a feeling of energy and tension. A great limestone effect in the glass with some enjoyable austerity. Straight and forward this runs in one line with a dollop of sweetness on the mid palate too - a clear sign of ripeness. Lovely and sapid on the finish, totally moreish. Organic and biodynamic. No chaptalisation. Ageing 80% barrels 225l, (70% new, 30% one wine), 20% large casks foudre and 500l Demi muids. 3.38pH. Owners Axelle and Pierre Courdurié.
Barrel Sample: 95 -
Jeb Dunnuck
Cassis, graphite, beautiful minerality, and liquid violets emerge from the vivid purple-hued 2024 Château Croix De Labrie. Medium to full-bodied, it has a pure, seamless mouthfeel, ripe, polished tannins, and a great finish. Another undeniable success here and a beautiful effort.
Barrel Sample: 93-95+ -
Vinous
The 2024 Croix de Labrie is gorgeous. Creamy and layered, Croix de Labrie offers up an exotic mélange of red-toned fruit, rose petal, cinnamon, pomegranate and new leather. All the elements are so well balanced. Floral overtones accompany the subtle yet persistent finish. –Antonio Galloni
Barrel Sample: 92-94
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.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.