2013 Le Desir
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Tasting notes
Really racy and lively – yes! This is my sort of wine. It has real lift and transparency together with beautiful balance and evolution – though I suspect most of the 2013 vintage will already have been drunk. (JR)
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
This is a tannic and rich red that is tightly wound and very muscular. Full-bodied, very intense and powerful. Needs time to show its full self. Try in 2021.
The 2013 Le Désir is once again alluring. Le Désir is quite powerful and intense, but it also has fairly soft contours for the year. Dark cherry, plum, smoke, chocolate, mocha, licorice and cloves are all pushed forward. Energetic and explosive, the 2013 is going to need at least a few years in bottle to settle down, but it has plenty to offer. I tasted the 2013 from tank just prior to bottling.
The 2013 Le Desir represents 2,500 cases. This is the softest of the three wines in 2013, and this blend of 61% Cabernet Franc, 23% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Malbec emerges with more than half of the cuvée coming from Hillsides in Alexander Valley, 37% from Chalk Hill and the rest tiny dollops from Bennett Valley and Knights Valley. Opaque purple, like its siblings, the wine is showing incredible floral, blueberry and espresso notes, exotic Asian spices, velvety texture, a supple, multilayered mouthfeel and incredible finish, with incense and licorice. This is magnificent young wine, with a good 40-50 years of upside potential. Pierre Seillan is justifiably proud of what he has achieved, and his first vintage of Vérité was only 1998, but they go from strength to strength.
About the producer
The winery was the dream of Jess Jackson, the man who founded the incredibly successful Jackson Family Wines. He, however, wanted to produce truly fine wine in Sonoma County.