Dominik Mueller

Tasting note

We brought this wine with us from Sylt. In fact, the wonderful people at Web Christel were so kind to sell this half bottle of 2013 Château Lagrange to us at a take-away price. Now back from our holidays, we thought it’s the perfect time to enjoy this “souvenir” with some canapés before settling back into everyday work life.

A cuvée of three quarters Cabernet Sauvignon, one fifth Merlot and some Petit Verdot. Purple, still youthful colour. The bouquet is flattering, with soft and creamy notes of vanilla, wood spice, cherries, and some pencil and mint. I would most likely speak of “elegance” here. On the palate, this trait continues: a seductive cherry fruit with fresh acidity and dark chocolate. After Eight with Amarena cherries. The tertiary notes are not yet in the foreground, which is perhaps a good thing, because the fruit is not bombastically dominant and could otherwise get lost.

The 2013 wine year was, as we know, a difficult one in the Médoc. Nevertheless, I would not completely disregard these wines. They can certainly be drunk younger than the red wines from warmer and drier years. This is also the case with this Ch. Lagrange, whose optimal drinking window I estimate to be 2018 to 2028. So it’s right in there now! What the 2013 from Lagrange may lack in power, it makes up for with elegant understatement.

Drink through 2028.

Tasted by Dominik Müller on Monday, 26 June 2023.