With so many 2018 Saint Emilion wines in this report, (191) to be exact, please note that it was divided into 3 separate articles. Information on the vintage and harvest, as well as producer quotes on 2018 St. Emilion are in part 1. Part 2 and 3 are devoted only to tasting notes.
If you want to read tasting notes for other 2018 Bordeaux wines 2018 Complete Guide to All the Best Wines of the Vintage
2018 Saint Emilion Tasting Notes Pt 2
2018 – Haut Brisson – Incense, cherries, plums, licorice and smoke combine well with the soft, silky, textures to create a medium-bodied, fresh, ripe, juicy, kirsch filled wine. 92 Pts
2018 – Haut Simard – Black raspberry, vanilla, plum and licorice notes are instantly accessible in the nose. From there you’ll find round, lush, soft, silky textured, dark red berries. This probably the finest vintage of Haut Simard ever produced. The wine blends 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc. 92 Pts
2018 – Haut-Sarpe – Much better in bottle than in barrel the wine is round, lush, showy and sweet, with loads of ripe fruits, crushed rocks and a judicious hit of oak. Give this a few years to continue filling out and soften and it should be a better wine. 90 Pts
2018 – Jean Faure – With good purity in the fruit, softness in its texture, ripe tannins and loads of fruit on your palate and in the juicy, sweet finish, I am really liking this elegantly styled wine. Give it a couple of years in the cellar and promises to be even better. 92 Pts
2018 – Jean Voisin – With a dark garnet hue, the wine is filled with cocoa, espresso, licorice and plums on the nose. Medium-bodied, fresh, elegant, sweet, red fruits carry through on the finish. 92 Pts
2018 – Jean Voisin L’Esprit – Chalky red berries in a medium-bodied, forward, early drinking light, fresh style, finishing with touches of licorice and sweet cherries. 87 Pts
2018 – La Bienfaisance – Licorice, espresso, smoke, dark red pit fruits fuse nicely on the nose and palate. Soft, silky, medium-bodied and elegant, this will offer its charms early in life. 92 Pts
2018 – La Clotte – Aromatically, the wine grabs you with notes of flowers, thyme, licorice, kirsch, espresso and cherries. Medium/full-bodied, silky, fresh and pure, you find depth of flavor, minerality, lush palate textures, vibrancy, length and loads of crushed rocks in the finish. 94 Pts
2018 – La Commanderie – Floral, soft and silky, the wine is medium-bodied, fresh, bright and lifted with ample sweet plums, licorice and espresso on the palate and in the finish. You can drink this with pleasure within a year or two of release. 91 Pts
2018 – La Confession – Quite floral in nature, from there you find espresso, smoke, licorice, stone and dark red fruits. Supple, plush and polished with richness to the ripe fruits and crushed stone in the finish, wait a few years and it is really going to show well. The wine was made from a blend of 73% Merlot and 27% Cabernet Franc. 94 Pts
2018 – La Croizille – Flowers, licorice, black cherry, dark chocolate and espresso bean are all out in front on the nose and on the round, plush, polished, fruit-filled palate. 90 Pts
2018 – La Dominique – Soft, silky and elegant, with no effort it is easy to get hooked on the fresh, sweet, ripe, refined red fruits with their beautiful purity. Medium-bodied, with a noticeable savory complexity on the nose and palate, this should age quite nicely. The wine is made from blending 85% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. 94 Pts
2018 – La Dominique Relais de – Smoke, espresso, thyme, flowers with red plums on the nose and palate create a soft, smooth, forward, easy to like, medium-bodied, sweet, fruity charmer with herbal accents that you can enjoy while waiting for the Grand Vin to develop. 89 Pts
2018 – La Fleur Chantecaille – Espresso and licorice crowd the nose before you find the fruits. With air, the wine shows its round plummy fruits and espresso. But the finish is quite oaky, so give it a few years in the cellar, hoping the wood melds into the wine. 86 Pts
2018 – La Fleur d’Arthus – Lusciously textured, ripe round and fruity with plums, chocolate and licorice in every sniff and sip. This is quite nice and as it is well-priced, it should offer a lot of bang for buck. 91 Pts
2018 – La Fleur Morange – Deep dark color and fruit with layers of lush, ripe, sweet, black plums, licorice, coffee and dark cocoa. The round, firm, full-bodied finish leaves you with sweet, dark red pit fruits, fennel and chocolate. Give it a few years in the cellar and it will be even better. 93 Pts
2018 – La Fleur Morange Mathilde – Earthy black cherries, herbs, plum and thyme notes fill the core of this wine. Ripe, round, fresh and with a stony complexity, along with layers of sweet, dark plum and cherry tones on the palate and in the finish. Year after year, this remains one of the top value plays in Saint Emilion. 91 Pts
2018 – La Fleur St.Emilion – Round, fruity, and sweet, but lacking in complexity. Still, the chewy fruit in the finish has charm. This is best suited for early drinking pleasure. 88 Pts
2018 – La Grace Dieu des Prieurs – Tobacco, cedar, leafy herbs, smoke and cherries dominate the nose. On the palate the medium-bodied wine has filled out during the aging, and now offers a soft core of cherries and herbs on the mid palate and finish. 89 Pts
2018 – La Grangere – Licorice, coffee bean, herbs and leafy notes come along with light red berry notes. Medium-bodied, soft and fresh, with a light cherry filled finish. This will be best in its youth. 86 Pts
2018 – La Marzelle – Licorice, chocolate, black cherry, smoke and vanilla are all over the place. Silky, soft and polished, this medium-bodied gem is forward, fresh, fruity and vibrant. La Marzelle is a hot property that keeps getting better and still sells for a fair price. 92 Pts
2018 – La Mondotte – This is a rich, lusciously textured, full-bodied, velvet laced wine that is impossible not to be enthralled by. Inky dark in color, you find flowers, crushed stones, ripe, juicy, fresh, sweet, blackberries, plums, cherries and assorted pit fruits. The intensity in the fruit, levels of depth and concentration, coupled with its gorgeous purity, essences of licorice, espresso, smoke and tobacco leaf with a touch of mint is there from start to finish. This is going to be a cellar treasure that will age and evolve for 2-3 decades with ease. The wine blends 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc. Only 1,600 cases were produced. 99 Pts
2018 – La Serre – Fresh, fruity and fun to taste, the wine has more richness than experienced in previous vintages. Now, you find layers of sweet plum, cherry, licorice, spice and earthy nuances. Give this just a few years in the cellar and enjoy it over the following 2 decades. 91 Pts
2018 – La Tour Figeac – Silky, sexy, fresh and vibrant, with a great core of elegantly textured fruits. The wine is aromatic, refined and with a beautiful sense of purity, lengthy and character. This is showing much better in bottle than in barrel, which is always something you want to see. 93 Pts
2018 – La Voute – Deep and dark in color and in fruit, the wine loads you up with licorice, espresso bean, smoke, chocolate and black cherries. Lush, opulent and silky, with layers of sweet, ripe plums, cherries and blackberries, with plenty of chocolate in the finish, this is so good to drink now, yet it will be even better with a few years of age. 93 Pts
2018 – La-Fleur-Morange – Crushed rocks and fresh red fruits are all over the place here. Silky, ripe, sweet and vibrant, with a spicy, mineral driven, salty end note. Give this 5-7 years in the cellar to really come together and it could score even higher. 93 Pts
2018 – Laforge – Licorice, smoke, chocolate and plums open the wine and carry through from the nose to the palate. The wine is juicy, silky, round and sweet with layers of cherries and silky tannins. The wine was produced from blending 92% Merlot and 8% Cabernet Franc. 92 Pts
2018 – Laniote – Medium-bodied, elegant, earthy and with some herbal and olive tendencies along with its earthy red pit fruits. 88 Pts
2018 – Laplagnotte-Bellevue – Light, lacking in density, this soft, forward, easy drinking, albeit simple cherry filled wine should be enjoyed over the next few years before its fruit begins to fade. 84 Pts
2018 – Larcis Ducasse – With a good depth of color the wine serves up its blend of roasted cherries, licorice, smoke, flowers, plum liqueur, espresso, kirsch and black raspberries with zero effort. The wine is dense, full-bodied and concentrated. Yet with all its weight and richness, everything is in balance. Texturally, all the fruit is drenched in velvet, rocks and stones. The seamless finish sticks with you for at least 50 seconds. The wine blends 89% Merlot with 11% Cabernet Franc. 98 Pts
2018 – Larmande – Smoke, spice box, espresso, licorice, plums and cherries shoot from the glass with ease. Medium-bodied, soft, elegant and fresh, with a solid blast of sweet cherries, licorice and cocoa coated plums, this is probably the finest vintage of Chateau Larmande ever produced. The wine is a blend of 81% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon. 91 Pts
2018 – Laroque – With a good depth of color, the fleshy wine is rich, full-bodied, luscious and loaded with a myriad of dark red berries, black cherries and just a touch of blue fruit. Concentrated, opulent and silky, the finish really sticks with you, which is a good thing as all this fruit is not something you want to miss. The wine blends 97% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, 14.5% ABV. Chateau Laroque remains a diamond in the rough selling for a song. This will change Laroque gains more popularity, buy it now if this is your style of wine. 95 Pts
2018 – Les Tours de Laroque – Medium-bodied, soft and ready to go, this is perfect for near term drinking due to its wealth of sweet, ripe, red berries, licorice and touch of coffee bean. Enjoy it over the next 5-7 years. 88 Pts
2018 – Laroze – Floral and fresh, the black raspberries, spice and plums already show really well today. Medium-bodied, soft, polished and silky, the wine tastes and feels great. There is good freshness and energy here. 92 Pts
2018 – Le Carre – Espresso, licorice, tobacco and spice hits the nose. Silky, sweet, fresh and juicy with a ripeness and purity to the fruit I really like a lot. With creamy tannins, espresso and cocoa to round things out in the endnote, give this a few years and it will be even better. The wine is a bend of 85% Merlot with 15% Cabernet Franc. 94 Pts
2018 – Le Chatelet – With licorice and espresso to accompany the red fruits, the wine is soft, forward, medium-bodied and almost ready to go. 88 Pts
2018 – Le Dome – Dark in color, the wine balances power with intensity. You find layers of richness, fruit, crushed rocks, stone, burnt caramel, espresso, ripe, lush plums, thyme and spice in every sniff, swallow and sip. The wine fills your palate while offering balance, complexity and a long, fruit-filled finish. Created from 80% Cabernet Franc and 20% Merlot, 14.7% ABV. 97 Pts
2018 – Le Prieure – Floral, stony, fruity, silky and fresh, with good lift, energy, sweetness and elegance. Give it 4-5 years in the cellar and enjoy it over the following 15 or more years with ease. 93 Pts
2018 – L’Eclat de Valentin – Herbal, olive and leafy accents come along with the core of earthy, mineral driven red fruits. This will appeal to lovers of old-school classic St. Emilion wines. 88 Pts
2018 – Les Angelots de Gracia – Opulently textured, with layers of espresso, dark cocoa, ripe black plums, cherries, chocolate and spice, the wine is long, polished and intense, with gorgeous textures and length. Give it a few years for the oak to better integrate. The wine blends 90% Merlot with 10% Cabernet Franc. 93 Pts
2018 – Les Asteries – With smoke, espresso, black and red pit fruits you also find a distinctive salty edge to the tannins here. This wine has a lot to offer. There is enough concentration and freshness found in its long finish that you can keep busy tasting this over the next two decades. The blend was made from 83% Merlot and 17% Cabernet Franc. 94 Pts
2018 – Les Gravieres – Rich, fruity, opulent and sensuous, this supple textured gem pops with espresso, dark fruits, chocolate, licorice and smoke. The wine is full-bodied, velvety and rich with layers of fruits on the finish. If you can wait 5 years or so, this will be an even better wine. 94 Pts
2018 – Leydet-Valentin – Blending 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc produced a floral, fresh, spicy, roasted cherry filled wine with a plush, silky, dark plum finish. 92 Pts
2018 – l’Hermitage Lescours – Medium-bodied, soft, elegant and floral, the wine is sweet and fruity with a focus on its red cherries and plum core of fruits. This is not a wine that will make old bones, so enjoy it in its youth. 89 Pts
2018 – Lif – The attention seeking nose kicks off with an array of fresh picked flowers, leaves, spice, licorice, espresso, cherries, plums and blackberries. Rich, concentrated, full-bodied and fresh, the opulent, silky, graceful fruits offer layers of hedonistic thrills. The velvety, sensuously textured finish expresses purity, lift and length. With more Cabernet Franc in the blend, the wine requires more time to develop. It is highly likely that once this hits full maturity, in about a decade, this will earn an even higher score. The wine blends 74% Merlot and 26% Cabernet Franc. 98 Pts
2018 – Louis – Fresh and fleshy, with ample layers of licorice, espresso, chocolate covered black plums and cherries. Round, lush, silky and fruity, with a solid dark, red pit fruit finish, this is going to offer fine drinking for at least 15 years or more. 92 Pts
2018 – Lucia – Opulent, lush, sweet and fruity with ample cocoa, licorice and chocolate covered plums on the palate and in the finish to round things out. You should be able to enjoy this on release, or with just a modicum of cellar time. 91 Pts
2018 – Lynsolence – Supple textured with silky tannins and layers of ripe black cherries, dark chocolate, licorice and spice, the wine offers depth, opulence and layers of mineral driven fruits that build and expand on the palate and in the finish. This is in competition for the finest vintage of Lynsolence ever produced. The wine is made from 100% Merlot. 93 Pts
For more 2018 Saint Emilion wines, please see 2018 St. Emilion Wine Guide Pt 1 for wines A-G, or the 2018 St. Emilion Wine Guide Pt 3 for wines M-Z.
