Description
// 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc.
"The 2022 Rouget is very attractive and quite floral on the nose, with crushed violets infusing black cherry and boysenberry fruit. The medium-bodied palate is lightly spiced with sapid black fruit giving way to mocha hints toward the finish. This is one of the most elegant vintages from Rouget and it should age with style, though one bottle was a bit more chocolatey on the finish than the other." - 92 points, Neal Martin
"The 2022 Rouget is a delicate, elegant wine. Crushed flowers, mocha and dark spice meld into black cherry, blackberry, chocolate and lavender. Rouget offers an appealing combination of intense, dark flavors layered into a mid-weight frame. There's plenty of depth, but it's expressed in an understated manner. I would cellar the 2022 for a few years, as the tannins could use a bit more time to integrate fully. Harvest began on September 6, the earliest ever here. Yields were 24 hectoliters per hectare, the result of spring frost and then dehydration during the summer. Tasted two times." - 94 points, Antonio Galloni
"A polished and complex Rouget with a fine balsamic touch. Dark plums, baking spices, white pepper and dried herbs. Round and powdery in texture, with ripe dark fruit and lush, melted tannins. Very long and appetizing. It’s marked by great length and ultra-ripe tannins. Approachable already, but this will gain complexity in the next two to four years." - 95 points, James Suckling
"An intense nose with fragrant floral notes and dark berry fruit. Grippy and intense, the powdery, softly drying tannins come in pretty quickly and cover up some of the more fun, joyful fruit elements. Quite a serious, massy wine that leans into the vintage, also with 15% alcohol, ending with bitter black chocolate, espresso, tobacco and cinnamon. Needs some more time to relax and soften." - 94 points, Georgina Hindle
"Dark crimson. Very ripe, very black fruit. And a hint of violets. More savoury on the palate. Dark, chewy and compact, the tannins powerful and slightly hard on the finish. Feels quite extracted." - 16/20, Jancis Robinson
