An estate readers need to have on their radar, the 2019 Château La Dominique is a beautiful Saint-Emilion coming from the northern sector of the region, not far from the Pomerol Bordeaux, which might explain why I always find a Pomerol-like elegance in this wine. Redcurrants, black raspberries, sappy flowers, sandalwood, tobacco, and hints of damp earth all define the nose, and the wine is medium to full-bodied, with a pure, layered, seamless mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It's going to benefit from 4-6 years of bottle age and keep for two decades.

The 2019 La Dominique has an impressive bouquet, one of the best that I have encountered in recent years, with clean, pure black cherry and blueberry fruit embroidered with violets. The oak is neatly assimilated. The palate is well defined with detailed black fruit laced with graphite, but the real difference vis-à-vis previous vintages is the weight on the mid-palate. There is no hole in the middle and the wine stretches out languorously on the finish. Is La Dominique beginning to realize its potential? This sample suggests that is the case.

The third vintage produced by the new team that is trying to take this irregular estate adjacent to Cheval Blanc to new heights is the 2019 La Dominique. Offering up aromas of sweet berries, cherries, mocha and spices, it's medium to full-bodied, velvety and seamless, with juicy acids, supple tannins and an elegantly gourmand profile. This is a terrific effort that shows that this estate's fine performance in vintages such as 1998, 1990 and 1989 is not a thing of the past.