Deep ruby colour purple reflections, very youngish. The nose tones are elegant black fruit notes with exquisite spicy and truffle touches. The palate is beautifully delicate, with subtle flavours of black fruit and plums that embrace the palate while keeping pleasant freshness on the finish—old Chateau with hundreds of years behind. Few people write about this Chateau and its vintages, so few views are found. PJ Mouieux writes that the wine has been vinified batch by batch, in oak or SS vats, then aged for 18 months in oak barrels (33% new). Traditional making and Grape Varieties 85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc as well- not much on complexity but an expression of terroir. Planting density is very high: 3,000 vines per acre / 7,500 vines per hectare—Average Age of Vines: 40 years. Soil mixed balanced and exposure excellent, leading to the production of fine, elegant Pomerol. 2014 is intense and fresh. N
o worries.
Scores are consistently high, in the level of 93 to 94. For example,
94 points, James Suckling
A unique red here with so many floral, bark and dark fruit aromas that follow through to a full body, chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Lively acidity. It needs two or three years to resolve the tannins. But it should come around nicely. 50% whole bunch fermentation. Cool. (2/2017). Edited.
93 points Vinous
The 2014 Rouget is a wonderfully complete wine that melds together super-ripe, racy fruit and structure. Succulent red cherry, rose petal, mint and white pepper give the wine its distinctive aromatic and flavour profile. Despite its flamboyance, 2014 has plenty of structural underpinning. A few years in the bottle should help the wine soften. Even so, this is a decidedly opulent Pomerol. 2014 was quite impressive both times I tasted it. (AG) (2/2017). edited.
94/100, VertdeVin, "The nose is fruity, gourmand, elegant and aromatic. It reveals notes of blackberry and cherry cream combined with subtle notes of cassis, crushed gariguette strawberry, liquorice, and toasted wood, as well as a hint of vanilla, dark chocolate and a discreet hint of coconut. The mouth is fruity, mineral, elegant, well-balanced, and sophisticated and offers fat and a good volume. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of crushed blackberry and sour cherries combined with slight notes of crunchy strawberry, cassis, small red berries, cocoa, liquorice, discreet woody notes and an imperceptible hint of coconut. Tannins are fine and well-built. Good length." Edited.
RP91. The 2014 Rouget was memorable, extremely rich and opulent when I originally tasted it from the barrel. Now in bottle, it has retained that brash and ostentatious persona with intense oyster-shell-tinged red fruit that packs a punch compared to some of its more demure brethren. The palate is medium-bodied with impressive density, a muscular Rouget at first but give it time in the glass, and you start to see more of its nuances and elegance. Hopefully, time will temper the aromatics; if so, this will be a worthy Pomerol. My only caveat is that the wood tannins are still conspicuous on the finish and need to be subsumed. Drink Date 2020-2038. Edited.
Just try for the still uninitiated! You may not need any reason to try this delicious second wine! It is just a great, mammoth, supple testament of wine--in short, a new archetype you must try.
2010 for this second wine is an elegant vintage—alcohol 14.5%, which flows in line with style. The vineyard where the Tempranillo grapes come from to make this red wine, aged for 14 months in new and used French oak barrels, was converted entirely to biodynamic agriculture. This 2010 has a deep ruby colour still with purple reflections and aromas of fresh red fruits(strawberries, raspberries and cherries). Pleasant herbaceous and vegetable notes, forest floor, mineral, smoked tobacco and spice touches surround it. On the palate, it confirms this fruit and mineral aspect, almost sapid; it has an impressive tannic structure, refreshing acidity and persistent finish, all wrapped in an aura of elegance and finesse, in perfect balance with its intensity and depth. Of course, like its first wine, the high altitude, cool nights, wide diurnal variation and soils richly endowed with chalk and limestone contributes to the style. These factors combine to give the wines of Ribera del Duero deep colour, varietal purity and vibrant acidity. Natural fermentation; no headache.
95 Guia Penin, 'Colour: Cherry, garnet rim; Aroma: spicy, creamy oak, toasty, complex, scrubland, fruit expression, red berry notes; Flavour: powerful, flavourful, toasty, powerful tannins, good acidity.' Edited.
94 points Adega, '"Vivid purple. Ripe cherry, cassis, potpourri and cracked pepper on the intensely perfumed nose, with subtle liquorice and woodsmoke qualities adding complexity. Deep, sweet and expansive, offering explosive dark berry compote, floral pastille and anise flavours. A spicy quality gains strength on the finish, which leaves smoke and mineral notes behind. This bottling has been going from strength to strength in recent years and offers superb value relative to its ritzy Pingus sibling. Edited.
NM also gave RP92, which comments,' The 2010 Flor de Pingus is raised in 40% to 50% new French oak (Darnajou and Taransaud). It has a superb bouquet that is taut at first but unfolds beautifully with very pure small dark cherries, cassis, orange blossom and a faint, attractive note of strawberry cheesecake. The palate is medium-bodied with sumptuous, plush tannins counterbalanced by the crisp thread of acidity. It has great clarity and tension with vibrant allspice and white pepper notes towards the finish that closes down a little, suggesting that it will need two or three years in the bottle. Excellent. Drink 2015-2025.' Edited.
Updated: Jul 19, 2023
Sociando Mallet is unique in shaping my tasting career: it helps form my concept of quality in wine. What struck me most about Sociando Mallet is their consistency. . Not only are they excellent in the good years, but they are also very well made in the less-good times. While it's always true that not all tasters like the Socialndo Mallet style, its performance, at least in the eyes of Parker et al., is always far better in structure, harmony, elegance and balance than some of the Crus, regardless of the vintage conditions.
Based in the Haut-Medoc just north of St Estephe, Sociando Mallet did not exist at the time of the 1855 classification and had no chance to opt to enter the Cru Bourgeois system. Neither a classed growth nor a Cru Bourgeois, Sociando-Mallet is structurally placed as an anomaly. To me, Sociando-Mallet is just too good to be classified. And this query, do we need classification systems at all, is always on my mind.
The average age of the vines is 35 years, with 55% being Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc; hence there are always complexities and intensities with the wines. The great vineyard sites, which lie on gravel over a clay-limestone subsoil sloping down to the river, are unusual in that they ripen quicker than their more southerly counterparts and are therefore picked earlier. The Chateau’s wines are always matured in 100% new barrels; hence there is always a spectrum of nose and taste.
This is rare for a non-classed growth, but the fact the wines absorb this amount of new oak so comfortably underlines their structure and quality. With 20 years+ of ageing for these 4 off-vintaged sets, all vintages are woven with silky fruit/wood tannins with unique wine structures. Yet all vintage shows peculiar characters. All vintages tasted are rough 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc. Fruit tones(primary, secondary and tertiary) are overall still balanced.
2002 reflects the fruity character of the vintage. Deep ruby with a medium garnet rim gives a classic Haut Medoc bouquet with a pleasant fruity touch and melted tar and graphite aromas with time. Masculine and earthy, the palate is somewhat grainy, barely drying, and in synthesis with the structure. This 2002 is precisely the kind of good work Sociando Mallet can do in a difficult vintage.
2003 is mega-concentrated. With silky tannins, sappy acidity, and excellent fruit length, the fruit nose is primary mainly, with few signs of evolution. Tannins are sweet. With deep ruby with a medium garnet rim, it noses notes of blackberries, blackcurrants and a pleasant touch of eucalyptus. On the palate, it is fruity, fresh, balanced and persistent finish(tones of cedar, leather, spices).
2007 gives medium ruby red with a tight garnet rim. Roasted notes mark the bouquet with a little fruity expression. Allowed it to breathe, there are notes of ripe, black fruit. On the palate, the wine is slightly creamy and balanced. However, just like the bouquet, it struggles to express itself. It may need more time.
2012 is more opened-up and drinking nicely now; a good light claret. With a deep ruby with purple reflections, it is a refreshing, well-typed bouquet with notes of eucalyptus, mint and a little black tea—fruity and lively mouthfeel. On the palate, the wine has freshness and a floral touch. It lacks flesh, but the structure is there.
2014. Deep, ruby, tight rim. Lots of potential. Intense Blackcurrant tones. Smoky aroma; austere, robust build, dense, of good length, tensioned; the style has remained faithfully Sociando-Mallet, but compared to the primeur pattern, it appears harsher and has lost some of its balance—mineral finish, full-bodied, structured, as intense as the nose. It could taste too low for some. Steadfast.
