wine details
reviews
James Suckling 98-99/100This shows wonderful precision and focus with dark-berry, tobacco, and blueberry character. Full-bodied, tight and vivid. Solid and structured. Really powerful for Figeac. The real new style here of Figeac that harkens back to the great wines of the 1950s and 1940s. This year, equal parts of merlot, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc.
Parker 97-99
The 2018 Figeac is composed of 37% Merlot, 33% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Cabernet Franc, harvested September 17 to October 12 with a 3.7 pH and 14% alcohol. Deep purple-black in color, it charges out of the gate with vivacious black and red cherries, cassis, warm plums and wild blueberries scents plus fragrant hints of violets, star anise, tilled soil and forest floor with wafts of Ceylon tea and chocolate box. Full-bodied and jam-packed with energetic, crunchy black and blue fruits, it has a rock-solid, firm, grainy frame and loads of bright, refreshing sparks lifting the dense layers on the very long, savory finish. Wow—the Cabernet really makes itself known this vintage, and it is good. The signature of this wine is so clear, so defined, that this is a Bordeaux wine without peers. In my view, this is the finest Figeac ever produced.
Decanter 98/100
Back to a more traditional blend after last year's frost impact, Figeac has done a wonderful job of harnessing the opulence of the vintage while maintaining freshness. This is extremely focussed and precise, with a silky texture and inky depths, developing complexity as the flavours unfurl. These are big tannins but they steal up on you, doing that subtle creep that's such a marker of the vintage. Powerful, utterly gorgeous and clearly a wine that will age well, this is equal to the estate's excellent 2016.
Jancis Robinson 18/20
37% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 33% Cabernet Sauvignon, pH 3.7 – 'classic for Figeac on gravel soils' and 'superb Cabernet Sauvignon', says technical director Frédéric Faye. Barrel sample. Inky with purple rim. A little bit spicy on the nose, scented and ripe but not overripe, that touch of nutmeg that I found on the Nénin. Ripe and pure. Very smooth and rich on the palate, remarkably soft when you know the quantity of tannins. Smooth and accessible, rounded and luxurious but balanced by the freshness. Grainy texture but fine grained. Second tasting of a cooler sample (the temporary tasting room was a tent and the samples warmed up quickly when the sun was out): fragrant with small black berries, opens up to a more scented beauty, still some spice but also a hint of roses. Greater finesse and freshness at a cooler temperature. Concentrated but so round on the finish. More Cabernet Sauvignon would have given a hardness on the finish, says Faye. Cool chalky finesse. Fine-grained persistence and freshness with a surprising juiciness on the finish. (JH) 14% Drink 2024-2034