France

Cabernet Sauvignon

Merlot

Cabernet Franc

Cabernet blanc

Ch. Sociando-Mallet

Chateau Sociando-Mallet Haut-Medoc

Bordeaux

Haut-Médoc

Attractive aromatics here, this has gentle smoke, grilled cedar and cloves, clear oak influence but one that is extremely well handled, adding a layer of interest and complexity over the soft berry fruits. Great job from Sociando in this challenging vintage, and fans of this wine will find plenty of estate typicity.

Inside Bordeaux

A blend of 50% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Cabernet Franc, the 2023 Sociando-Mallet is deep garnet-purple in color. It slowly emerges from the glass with pure notes of fresh strawberries and black raspberries, plus hints of lavender, rose bud tea, and wild thyme, with a touch of cinnamon. The medium-bodied palate is bright, crunchy, and tightly wound, with great tension and lightly chewy tannins to support, finishing on a minerally note.

by Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW

Slap bang in the Haut-Médoc for this one, classic Left Bank with glass-staining purple in colour, slate and cassis, graphite and crushed stones, this is manages to be both muscular and restrained, exuberant and understated. Has the concentration of the vintage but controls it well - one to look out for, and proof that gravel could work in the heat of the vintage if the location is right, and the vineyard was treated carefully.

Sweetness on the first nose, and a fleshy welcome to the raspberry, blueberry and blackberry fruits. Has finesse, not overly concentrated but they have handled it well, ensuring energy and precision. The acidity rises on the finish, just so tough to avoid in 2021. Sylvie Gautreau is the 2nd generation owner of this well loved 77ha estate, 48hl/h yield, Michel-Bernard Couanson consultant. Harvest September 27 to October 13.

Ung klar mørk rød på farge.
Lukt av mørke og røde bær, lakris, eik og kanskje litt tobakk.
Bløt bær på smak. Godt integrerte tanniner og bra syre. Drikkes godt nå men kan også holde godt mange år enda i kjelleren. God vin - 92 poeng.

Amatør

The 2019 Sociando-Mallet has a medium to deep garnet-purple color. It is a little sluggish to begin, then delivers subtle notes of warm cassis, stewed plums, and pencil shavings, with touches of underbrush and wild fungi. The medium to full-bodied palate is a tad chewy and lean, with a refreshing, uncomplicated finish.

The architecture through the palate is a little unusual here - silky texture with weight that reflects a higher Merlot content. It's a good quality enjoyable wine, with brambled hedgerow character and plenty of cocoa dusting and liqourice root. François Hugueniot technical director as of this vintage, moving over after a career in US and South Africa. Highest alcohol to date in this lineup and the first one where there is a hint of heat (an issue I found generally with the 2018 vintage). 90% new French oak for ageing, harvest September 19 to October 12.

Such an effortless sweet appeal to this wine, black fruits laced with cumin, star anise, sage, mint leaf. Not the structure for ageing as with the 2016, but delicious right now and over the next decade, finessed tannins with plenty to enjoy. Harvest September 13 to October 3. No fining, light filtration. Last year with Patrice Laugac as cellar master. 46hl/h yield 90% new oak for ageing, 77ha in production. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Takes its time to open, this is structured and hugely impressive, back to the signature concentrated graphite, cassis, luxurious texture and plenty of graphite and crayon Left Bank kick. This one needs to be carafed if drinking any time soon. Michel Couasnon consultant, 100% new oak for 12 months then 6 months in vat. 48hl/h yield, harvest September 26 to October 19.

Grilled raspberry, smoky, soft brambled hedgerow fruits, good quality, highlights the gourmet edge of 2014 but a little softer overall tjhan vintages on either side. Appealing and unfussy, still with the tannic grip that Sociando does so well. 47hl/h yield, last year with Vincent Faure as director. 100% new oak, unfiltered and unfined, 77ha in production.

The 2014 Sociando-Mallet is medium to deep garnet in color. Notes of blackcurrant jelly and prunes hop from the glass, giving way to nuances of candied violets, star anise, and mossy tree bark. The medium-bodied palate is elegantly crafted and refreshing, with a firm, grainy backbone and long, earthy finish.

The 2013 Sociando-Mallet has a medium garnet color, with a touch of brick. It begins with broody notions of tar, scorched earth, and dried herbs, leading to a core of prunes, fruitcake, and graphite, with a hint of leather. The medium-bodied palate delivers a good wallop of fruit with firm, rugged tannins and plenty of freshness, finishing chewy.

Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2012 Sociando-Mallet leaps with lively notes of kirsch, redcurrants, and menthol plus hints of rosehip tea, tobacco, and pencil shavings. The medium-bodied palate is a little dilute, with approachable, chewy tannins and a soft-spoken finish to this nicely managed wine.

A little subdued, with some austerity to the tannins on the opening, but this has plenty of Left Bank typicity, cocoa dusting, bilberry, raspberry leaf, finessed. 81ha in prouction, unfined, light filtration, 100% new oak for ageing. Earliest harvest until 2022, September 7 to 27, 53hl/h yield, Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Fennel, black chocolate, crushed roses, cassis, blackberry, will run and run, and is exceptional value, particularly in the context of the vintage. Tasted ex-retail, not ex-chateau. Harvest September 24 to October 12. 100% new oak for ageing, native yeast fermentation. One corked bottle, second tasted exceptional.

Creamy fruit on the opening, as with the 2003, accompanied by well structured tannins that take a little time to open up. This has plenty of depth and smoked spice, with chalky tannins, dark chocolate, cocoa powder, grilled caramel, dark fruits with luscious cherries heading towards crème de cassis, extraction pushed just a little too hard. This is fleshy, impressive. Harvest September 18 to October 5, unfined, light filtration. 100% new oak for ageing. 82ha in production. 58hl/h yield. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Vibrant colour, with attractive reflective quality, plenty of vivid fruits, spiced liqourice root and violet flowers on the opening, alongside dried herbs, bitter orange, cassis and loganberry. Mouthwatering on the finish, this is up there with one of the great vintages of the vertical - so effortless that it can be easy to miss how good it it. 45hl/h yield, 90ha in production, 100% new oak for ageing for 12 month, then 6 months in vat, 18 months in total. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

A more classic year after the heat of 2003, and even on the colour we are back to a cooler red, edge of mint leaf, jasmine, camomile, black tea, cassis, a little less intensity through the mid palate with an attractive reserve and balance, and touch of bite to the tannins. 100% new oak, then 6 months in vat. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Soft red, with a freshness on the attack that gives an impressive reminder of the clays in the soil here, and in the proximity to the river with its cooling breezes. Expect a different profile due to the heat of the vintage, giving notes of cumin, sandalwood, orange peel, jasmine, with raspberry coulis and blackberry fruits. Touch of rusticity on the finish, but this is a delicious wine fully in its drinking window, should have another decade ahead of it. Harvest September 29 to October 11 (late for the year). Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant. 90ha in production, 45h/h yield, 80% new oak.

Nuanced aromatics, lightly spiced, cumin, rosemary, freshly cut grass, a little soft on the finish, less powerful grip than the 2000, but a reminder that even in more challenging vintages there is often something to enjoy in Sociando, helping its reputation for consistency. 90ha in production, harvest September 29 to October 22, destemmed, native yeasts, malo in vat with no added bacteria, unfined with light filtration, 100% new oak 12 months, plus 6 months in barrel.

The colour is vivid ruby, young, with a gentle welcoming open to the palate, deepened by grilled cedar smoke, capsicum and brambled blackberry. Not quite the same depth through the mid palate as many 2000s, but it is balanced out by mouthwatering acidites on the finish. 90ha in production at this point, 45hl/h yield, unfined and just light filtration before bottling, 100% new oak for 12 months then 6 months in vat, 18 months in total, 65hl/h yield. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant. Harvest September 29 to October 11.

Red fruit aromatics, softened pureed raspberry and redcurrant, perhaps the silkiest in terms of tannic structure and texture so far. Not quite knocking on the door of the 1996 but it is delicious all the same. Harvest September 24 to October 5, hand sorting and hand harvesting (as every year). Patrice Laugac cellar master, Vincent Faure director. 100% new oak for 12 months, then 6 months in vat, total 18 months ageing. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

I've tasted this vintage of Sociando a few times recently, and strongly recommend. Sums up the pull of mature Left Bank with its crayon, cigar, blackberry, soft cassis puree, touch of mint leaf, cedar, graphite, and a cushion of air that makes everything so mouthwatering and delicate on the finish, drawing you back in, looking for another sip. Very good quality, fine tannins that are softened into the structure but still with character, this is one of the values of the vintage. Harvest September 29 to October 11, 90ha in production at this point, meaning owner Jean Gautreau had done some serious purchasing over the previous year. 12 months in barrel and then a further 6 months in vats, so 18 months in total. 100% new oak for ageing.

Colour is softened ruby, tawny around the edges, with chalky tannins. Mouthwatering edge of salinity with oyster shell, soy sauce, earth, loganberry, raspberry, cigar box and tobacco leaf, good quality and heading towards fully mature and ready to drink. Harvest September 14 to 26, 56ha in production, no fining but light filtration, 12 months in barrel and then a further 6 months in vats, so 18 months in total. 100% new oak. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Smoked caramel, softening to blackberry and raspberry fruits sharpened by bitter orange peel. The texture is rich and there are grilled cedar and liqourice notes through the mid palate. This is a good quality 1991, suprisingly so for a challenging vintage, but it fades quickly on the finish. Gabriel Ribero cellar master. 49ha in production, harvest September 24th to October 4th, 32hl/h yield, no fining but light filtration, 12 months in barrel and then a further 6 months in vats, so 18 months in total. 80% new oak. No need to wait any longer to drink.

The nose is a little less pure and focused than the 1986, but it is welcoming, with softened tannins, smoked earth, cigar, campfire, plenty of grilled blackberry noes, it is unfussy with poise and finesse, with the mouthwatering finish that take you away from tasting a wine and makes you want to drink it. Suggest enjoying soon to really benefit from this gorgeous caress of tannins. Unfiltered and unfined, harvest September 13 to October 2. At this point they were putting it into 80% new oak, and had 50ha in production. Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Back to the deeper colour of the 1982, a little more subdued on the nose, then opens to show camomile, violet, lilac and black tea, plenty of complexity on the palate also, edges of mint leaf, blackberry, loganberry, thre is life in this, even tannic grip, not fully melted into the structure, and a refreshing mouthwatering quality on the finish. One to look out for. 80hl/h yield, unfiltered, unfined, 29ha in production, harvest September 30 to October 11, 33% new oak for ageing, Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Not quite as concentrated as the 1982, this has a touch of leafy raspberry and rose stem on the aromatics, slightly softer ruby red colour also, just beginning to fade around the edges. On the palate things are still delightful, structured, fresh acidities on the finish with orange peel, pomegranate, waves of raspberry puree and white pepper studding. This one is fully ready to drink, 29ha of vines in 1985, unfiltered and unfined, 33% new oak for ageing, Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Tobacco, cigar leaf, earth, ruby in colour, softening to tawny around the edges. On the palate the tannins are melted into the structure, with tiny pulses of spiced rosemary and black pepper that draw out the flavours. It's an 1982 that doesn't knock your socks off as some can still do at this point, but it is still very much in the game, and is a beautiful example of the power of this vintage. Unfiltered, unfined. 28ha of vineyards at the time, and a big vintage in terms of production, around 71hl/h yield. 12 months in barrel and then a further 6 months in vats, so 18 months in total. Opened just before tasting and kept improving in the glass, so there is clearly still time ahead - suggest maybe 30 minutes in a carafe before drinking. Native yeasts, malolactic fermentation in vats, no added baceria. Harvest Spemteber 17 to October 3, 33% new oak for ageing, Michel-Bernard Couasnon consultant.

Category	Red wine
Vinmonopolet no.
Producer	Ch. Sociando-Mallet
Vintages	1994
Country	France, Bordeaux, Haut-Médoc
Bottle	75 cl

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Sugar	g/l

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