Chateau Lafleur, Pomerol 2020

The 2020 Lafleur lies in marked contrast to the 2019. This is far less expressive and, as I remarked last year, shows a little more reduction. You can immediately tell this is a very serious, almost stentorian Lafleur, but it is refusing to come out and play. The palate is quintessentially Lafleur, a bit reserved and moody with quite hefty tannins, perhaps not as finessed as the 2019. Stylistically it harks back to the 2000 and as such, demands at least another decade in bottle. (Perhaps the larger format compounds its backward nature.) Patience is required. Tasted from ex-château magnum at Kate & Kon's 40-Year vertical in Austria.

• Drinking Window: 2038 - 2070
• Reviewer Name: Neal Martin
• Review Date: September 2025