97POINTS
19/20
Vérité La Muse 2019
Sonoma County, California, United StatesMany years ago, I walked the early Vérité vineyard blocks with winegrower Pierre Seillan, whose take on complexity was simple, “Every hillside, every elevation and every aspect offers us a different micro-cru. From the beginning, the pure expression of these unique sites has defined our winemaking philosophy.” It makes it easy to understand the birth of the Vérité trilogy: La Joie, La Muse, and La Desire, each exploring a different grape while reflecting its Sonoma origins. In 2019 the vintage began with a healthy water supply in the soil from a warm winter of storms. Budbreak was early in what would be a warm year, complete with some heat spikes. Merlot is at the heart of la Muse, and it comes with a series of complex flavour layers. Inspired by the Pomerol style, the first release was 21 years ago. Seillan works with fifty micro-crus in Eastern Sonoma when he blends this wine. The fruit is California opulent, but Seillan plays that off against dried herbs, woodland spices, and French oak ageing to achieve a level of harmony seldom seen in California. 2019 is aged 16 months in 95 percent new French oak, and the blend is 90/5/5/ merlot, cabernet franc, and malbec from Alexander Valley, Bennett Valley, Chalk Hill, and Knights Valley.Tasted: 11 March 2023Tasted by: Anthony GismondiPrices:BC | $520.00 | 750ml | private wine shops |
AB | $539.00 | 750ml | select private wine shops |
Blend: Merlot - Cabernet Franc - MalbecCSPC: 408895