The 2021 Le Pin has turned out beautifully in bottle, bursting with aromas of raspberries and blackberries mingled with notions of pencil shavings, spices, black truffle and licorice, framed by a discreet touch of new oak (only 55% new this year). Medium to full-bodied, ample and enveloping, it's suave and sensual, with a fleshy core of fruit and beautifully refined tannins and concludes with a long, rose-inflected finish. Le Pin, after all, is an early-ripening, well-drained terroir, so it's hardly surprising that it should perform especially well in a vintage like 2021.

I tasted the 2021 Le Pin several times this spring, and on every occasion the wine showed brilliantly. Wafting from the glass with aromas of dark berries, plums, exotic spices, vine smoke and carnal nuances, it's medium to full-bodied, sumptuous and enveloping, with a velvety attack, supple tannins and a long, penetrating finish. Seamless and impressively concentrated, it demonstrates how precocious, well-drained sites such as Le Pin came into their own in the 2021 growing season. As usual, it's 100% Merlot, and this year it checks in at 13.4% alcohol.