Gérard Bertrand – Château de Villemajou Grand Vin – 2012

Dark red ruby colour, a certain evolution, nothing blue or purple. Quite intense nose, also with a hint of evolution; there’s a hint of roasted wood, some leather, some balmy notes, and rather sweet plum and red berries. Palate is well balanced, it’s rather medium weight, with quite soft and sweet fruit that’s well-integrated. I get a lot of spicy notes here, from dry spices like cumin, pepper, vanilla; we also have a slight hint of animal, leather. Oak is well integrated already, fruit is sweet and attractive. There’s still a hint of tannin on the finish, that indicates that this perhaps should get another year for those tannins to round off. I would call this a traditional South French style, with a lot of charm and that slight leathery animal spiciness. Perfectly drinkable today, particularly if we enjoy something quite rustic and tasty like confit de canard or something in that direction. Charming wine, with a good potential.