Description
Les Dames de Bonneau is made only in years where Jean-Marie Guffens can work with the purest botrytis. It’s from a parcel of 100-year-old Semillon vines that count amongst the oldest in Barsac. It is made from a draconian selection of intensely concentrated fruit that was harvested at the beginning of November. The grapes were pressed in Guffen’s traditional vertical press and aged for 18 months in oak barrels. It finished at 186 g/L. The result is one of the most intense and mesmerising wines of the vintage. The first release since 2018, it has a gorgeous, haunting bouquet with kirsch-soaked berries, pêche de vigne, clementine and marigold flowers, all beautifully focused and extremely intense. The palate is unctuous, almost granular, with notes of honeycomb and crystalised ginger, a killer line of acidity and a wash of candied peel tang on a finish that may as well last forever. Elite-level winemaking on show here. What the Wine Advocate note doesn’t say is that Guffen’s 2022 Les Dames received rated the second highest wine of the vintage—just below d’Yquem! Enough said.
“Jean-Marie Guffens masterfully grasped the essence of this vintage. By delaying his harvest, he achieved an impressive concentration of his grapes while preserving their remarkable freshness and acidity. This approach allowed him to craft one of the standout vintage wines. The 2022 Les Dames de Bonneau reveals a deep, powerful and complex bouquet of apricots, quince, smoke, spices, spring flowers and ripe orchard fruits, followed by a dense, full-bodied, textural and layered palate, with a massive level of concentration, superb chalky dry extracts and an endless, ethereal and refined finish. While expressive and vibrant at this stage, it should be kept in the cellar for 5 to 6 years before it is opened, and it can age gracefully over the next 30 to 50 years. With 186 grams per liter of residual sugar, it is one of the best wines produced at this address.” - 97 points, Yohan Castaing, The Wine Advocate
