All of the following 2021 Fronsac and 2021 Canon Fronsac wines were tasted in Bordeaux in non-blind tasting conditions in my home office.
2021 Barrabaque Prestige – Canon-Fronsac – Oak, licorice, and black raspberries get you going. The palate is soft, round and loaded with toasty oak, black cherries, very dark cocoa and a hint of a bitter note that intrudes in the finish. You can enjoy this on release and over the next several years. Drink from 2024-2032. 87 Pts
2021 Beausejour – Fronsac – Light, bright and a bit green, there is also ripe red fruits with a salty edge that lingers. Drink from 2024-2032. 87 Pts
2021 Clos du Roy – Fronsac – Flowers, espresso, seaweed and tobacco leaves open the perfume. The palate is all about its sweet, perky cherries, plums and bitter chocolate. The wine has lift and vibrancy with just a hint of ginger on the backend of the finish. Drink from 2024-2035. 90 Pts
2021 Dalem – Fronsac – Forward, soft, silky, fresh, clean, pure, red berry centric wine with lift, and energy in the cherry and red plum filled finish. You can drink this on release. Dalem has been on quite a roll lately, and 2021 is no exception. Drink from 2024–2034. 92 Pts
2021 De Carles – Fronsac – Flowers, licorice, mint, spice and cocoa pop in the nose. Made from 100% Merlot, on the palate, the wine is soft, round, and fruit-forward, with a chocolate tone that shows along with the red fruits in the finish. Drink from 2024-2034. 90 Pts
2021 Du-Gazin – Canon-Fronsac – With a refreshing note of menthol that comes along with the red fruits in the nose. the wine, made from 100% Merlot, is quite vibrant, energetic, and packed with sweet, almost, high-toned red fruits. This will be just great to enjoy on release and over the next decade or so. Drink from 2024-2032. 89 Pts
2021 Fontenil – Fronsac – Fresh and lifted, with a palate loaded with black raspberries, cherries and plums. The wine is energetic, elegant and pure. There is a salty note on the back end that fades just as the refreshing nuance of spearmint comes in. You can enjoy this with pleasure on release for its fruit, and freshness. The wine is quite an accomplishment, considering the vintage. Drink from 2024-2036. 92 Pts
2021 Gaby – Canon-Fronsac – High-toned red fruits are all over the place here. The wine is soft, approachable and zesty, with sweetness to the fresh, red fruits on the mid-palate, and in the finish. Drink from 2024-2031. 88 Pts
2021 George 7 – Fronsac – The wine instantly focuses you on its minerality with its salty-edged red fruits. But with this vintage, there is more rocks and stones than red fruits, so it ends up being quite dry and chalky in the finish. Produced from 100% Merlot, you should drink this young. Drink from 2024-2031. 86 Pts
2021 Haut Carles – Fronsac – Chocolate covered black cherries, licorice and espresso come through on the nose with no effort. Medium-bodied, soft, round and vibrant, with a red cherry, chocolate, and red plum oriented finish. Drink from 2024-2033. 90 Pts
2021 Herve-Laroque – Fronsac – Tobacco leaf, espresso, and plums form the character of this medium-bodied, soft, round, sweet, fresh, easy-to-like, and even easier to drink charmer with its touch of bitter orange that shows up at the end of the finish. You can open this with pleasure on release. Drink from 2024-2032. 89 Pts
2021 La Dauphine – Fronsac – Flowers and espresso show, along with ripe plums and crushed rocks in the nose. The palate is even better with its sweet, ripe, salty-edged plums, cherries and spice. Medium-bodied with loads of lift, the vibrant finish is clean and fresh, with ample red fruits and a light touch of cocoa on the backend. Drink from 2024-2036. 92 Pts
2021 La Riviere – Fronsac – Espresso, cocoa, cherries and floral aromas open the wine. On the palate, the wine is round, forward and chocolatey with a dusty note in the red fruited finish. You can drink this on release. Drink from 2024-2032. 89 Pts
2021 La Vieille Cure – Fronsac – Salty cherries, cocoa, licorice and toasty oak are front and center here, in the nose, and in the round, soft, vibrant palate. The cherry-toned endnote is complicated by a squeeze of refreshing orange that shows up on the vibrant, backend. Drink from 2024-203. 90 Pts
2021 Les-Trois-Croix – Fronsac – Flowers, licorice, black cherries and espresso pop with no effort in the nose. The palate is even better with layers of fresh, sweet, crisp red fruits, touch of salt, plums and a hint of chocolate on the backend. Drink from 2024-2036. 91 Pts
2021 Mayne-Viel – Fronsac – Flowers, cherries and underbrush notes take center stage in this medium-bodied, forward, early-drinking, easy-going wine. Bright, crisp and tart, with a dry, minty finish, this will be best over the next few years. Drink from 2024-2028. 85 Pts
2021 Mayne-Viel Cuvée Aliénor – Fronsac – Espresso, incense, dried flowers and savory-edged red fruits form the core of this wines character. On the palate, the wine is soft, chewy, oaky and fruity with a strong espresso tone accompanying the red fruits in the finish. Drink from 2024-2030. 87 Pts
2021 Moulin-Haut-Laroque – Fronsac – Forward, medium-bodied, soft and fresh. The fruit is light, sweet and pure, though, there is not a lot of weight and depth. This will be a pleasure to enjoy on release. Drink from 2024-2032. 89 Pts
2021 Plain-Point – Fronsac – Cocoa dusted, black cherries, licorice and a touch of oak shine on the palate and in the perfume. The wine is medium-bodied, soft and polished with a light, red cherry, cocoa and black raspberry note in the finish. Drink from 2024-2032. 89 Pts
2021 Villars – Fronsac – The nose offers an oaky overtone before getting to its flowers and plummy red fruit. Medium-bodied, soft and approachable, the wine adds a light touch of chocolate to its red fruits in the finish. Drink from 2024-2033. 90 Pts
For an overview of the 2021 Bordeaux vintage with links to all of our appellation reports 2021 Bordeaux In Bottle Report for the Best 750 Wines of the vintage We are continuing our reports on all of the best wines tasted in bottle from the 2021 Bordeaux vintage. Up next, we are staying in the Right Bank with tasting notes, and ratings for 2021 Right Bank wines with a report on all of the top 2021 Cotes de Bordeaux Wines followed by a report, and wine buying guide for the best St. Emilion Satellite appellation wines, before moving back to the Left Bank. We have a long way to go. So, stay tuned.
