Need help? Call +44 (0)20 7793 7900 or email wine@goedhuiswaddesdon.com.
Strong dark berried-fruit plate. This is a rich and strong wine with masses of firm weight and power. Not for the fainthearted but a very fine example for the quality that can be achieved from some of the more northerly estates in the Médoc.
Strong dark berried-fruit plate. This is a rich and strong wine with masses of firm weight and power. Not for the fainthearted but a very fine example for the quality that can be achieved from some of the more northerly estates in the Médoc.
The 2010 Sociando-Mallet is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc picked between September 24 and October 15. There is initially a touch of reduction, although that soon blows away to reveal attractive blackberry, briar, cigar box and dried herb/scorched earth scents that blossom with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with well-integrated oak, supple tannin, well-judged acidity and a smooth, sensual finish (unusual for this property!) This is a great Sociando-Mallet destined for long-term aging. Tasted at the vertical tasting at Sociando-Mallet.
A very classic wine for patient connoisseurs, Sociando Mallet makes no compromises and continues to produce one of the finest wines among non-classified estates in Haut-Medoc. Dense purple to the rim, the opaque purple-colored 2010 offers up notes of graphite, blueberry and black raspberry fruit, a hint of cassis, some licorice and wet rocks. Deep, full-bodied and almost excruciatingly tannic, this full-throttle, balls-to-the-wall style of wine needs at least 8-10 years of cellaring and should keep for three decades or more.
The classic 2010 displays everything one expects from this over-achieving Haut-Medoc. A dense purple color is followed by aromas of blueberries, black currants, graphite and crushed rocks, a layered, full-bodied mouthfeel, stunning concentration and sweet, more polished and refined tannins than are normally found in barrel samples of Sociando Mallet. This cuvee should last for 20-30 years. Drink: 2011 - 2041
Great depth of fruit, deep ripeness and resonant flavours, fine texture and vigour, very good future. Drink 2015-25.
Lively and racy and with more than a hint of young oak! Sweet start and very polished palate. Chewy finish but with lots and lots of sweet fruit. Well done! Quite luscious, very like a fine St-Estèphe. Drink 2017-2027
The 2010 Sociando Mallet has a well defined, pure bouquet with blackberry, bilberry and light estuarine scents that gently waft from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, a fine bead of acidity and good weight. It just needs more complexity and terroir expression on the finish. Give this another two or three years. This is one wine where I have encountered better bottles. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.
The Haut-Médoc is an appellation within the Médoc that stretches along the left bank of the Gironde from Blanquefort in the south to the north of Bordeaux. The region encompasses the more famous communes of St-Estèphe, Pauillac, St-Julien and Margaux. Following the 1855 classification many of its most famous estates were classified and scored as first, second, third, fourth or fifth growths. This was based on their social and commercial positions at the time. Most of these classed growths use the village appellation name, such as Pauillac. However five of these classed growths fell outside a village appellation so take the name Haut-Médoc. Many of the vineyards which are classified as Haut-Médoc may actually also be referred to as Cru Bourgeois wines. These wines have lower permitted yields and so offer great value for money.
