(96-97 points) Over the past few months, the wine has added structure and fleshed out following the initial April tastings. Pure sensations of wild, ripe and overripe cherries, boysenberry, plum, espresso and stone. Full bodied, sweet, concentrated, long and fresh, the wine moves from blackberries to plum and back again with spice, licorice and earth. Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/search-wine-tasting-notes/?szSearch=2012%20Lafleur

The nose to this is fascinating with orange peel, mangoes, stones and hints of blanched walnuts. Full-bodied, yet dense and reserved. It shows amazing length and finesse. The finish shows wonderful, subtle and pure fruit. Breathtakingly subtle and complex. Better in 2018 but I love it.

The 2012 Lafleur is medium to deep garnet colored. It features profound scents of dried cherries, prunes, and wild thyme plus underlying suggestions of camphor, iron ore, and cumin seed. The medium to full-bodied palate is rich and multi-layered, supported by rounded tannins and just enough freshness, finishing with an herbal lift.

The 2012 Lafleur continues to show well in bottle. Contrasted directly against the 2011, this has just a notch more brightness and energy with blackberry and light iodine scents, just a touch of black truffle and that hint of lavender that only emerges with time in the glass. The palate is refined and focused with insistent grip, plenty of cedar and tobacco intertwined with the black fruit and a persistent saline finish that expresses more Cabernet Franc than Merlot. Wonderful. Tasted from ex-château magnum at Kate & Kon's 40-Year vertical in Austria. -- Neal Martin

(NM92-94 points) The Grand Vin is a blend of 46% Merlot picked on 23rd September and 54% Cabernet Franc picked on 6th October cropped at around 32hl/ha. The Merlot is quite expressive on the nose once again with redcurrant and raspberry scents intermingling with wilted rose petal scents and flinty notes. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly chalky tannins on the entry. The acidity is crisp and lifted. This is a more masculine Lafleur: a little broody as it so often is at this primordial stage, the oak (around 25% new) waiting patiently in the background. There is good weight here and finish has a generosity and openness that is unusual for the vintage.

Tasted blind at the Southwold 2012 tasting, the 2012 Lafleur has a very well-defined bouquet that is complex and laden with blackberry, granite, cedar and veins of graphite, all with razor-like precision. The palate is medium-bodied with fine delineation and lovely poise. There are plenty of graphite-infused black fruit interwoven into this Pomerol with a cheeky dab of spiciness on the finish that needs to manifest just a little more precision in order that it attains full potential. As usual, Baptiste, Julie and Jacques Guinaudeau have conjured a serious Lafleur destined for long-term ageing. Tasted January 2016. - Neal Martin