Tasting 350 5-28-23. Laetitia Roca Château La Rose Pauillac 2018. Alcohol – 14.0%. Serving Temperature – 52 degrees. Decant – 1 hour. Served in a Riedel Bordeaux glass. Label Art – 4. Personalized Cork – Yes. Overall Rating – 5 Hearts. Nine Word Review Dark Tree Fruits, Bold Body, Bold Tannins, Moderate Acidity Objective Review To The Eye, the Laetitia Roca Château La Rose Pauillac 2018 displays to the Taster a Deep Ruby Red wine with a Garnet Rim Variation. Once Swirled, the wine creates an Even Sheeting with Long, Pale Violet Legs which return to the wine within 3 minutes. To The Nose, the wine presents the Aroma of Dark Bush Fruits and Red Tree Fruits. The Bouquet is noted for the flavors of Blackberry, Boysenberry, Black Cherry, Black Current, Red Cherry, Black Pepper, Violet, Leather, and Vanilla. To The Palate, the Attack is fruity for 3 seconds when the Bold Tannins and Moderate Acidity present themselves. The wine is of Bold Body. The Evolution is noted for Medium Tannins, Medium Acidity, and the flavors of Red Bush Fruits. The Finish is Mildly Acidic, Mildly Tannic, and lingers for 3 minutes. This is a sound and well-balanced wine. Wine and Food Pairing For a Cheese Pairing, think about using Aged Cheddar, Alpine, Aged Swiss, Mild Blue, Brie, Camembert, Cheddar, Colby, Gorgonzola, Aged Gouda, Aged Jack, Parmesan, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Roquefort, and Sheep. For this pairing, I went with some Camembert, Jarlsberg Swiss, and Smoked Gouda. The Camembert was a Very Good pairing. The nuttiness complimented the fruitiness of the wine. The creaminess coated the palate nicely and the was washed clean by the wine’s acidity. The fattiness tamed the tannins and allowed the fruitiness to come forward. The Jarlsberg was a Very Good pairing. The fruitiness of the wine complimented the nuttiness of the cheese. The fattiness tamed the tannins and complimented the fruitiness of the wine. The Smoked Gouda was a Good Pairing. The smokiness of the cheese complimented the spiciness of the wine. The cheese lacked the fattiness to tame the tannins which overpowered the cheese and its nuttiness. For a Food Pairing, the Base Ingredients to consider are Beef, Buffalo, Dark Poultry Cuts, Duck, Lamb, Pork, Squab, Veal, and Venison. For Bridge Ingredients, lean toward – Apples, Avocado, Bacon, Butter, Coconut, Coconut Milk, Corn, Cream, EVOO, Roasted Fennel, Roasted Garlic, Mango, Papaya, Milk, Dijon Mustard, Sweet Onion, Pears, Pineapple, Polenta, Pumpkin, Sour Cream, Squash and Tomato. I could go in so many directions with this wine, including California King Salmon, but which path shall I walk? Hmm… Ok, well I think that I am going to keep this one simple and go with a couple of Street Tacos in Corn shells with Taco Meat, Sharp Cheddar Cheese, a few drops of Ghost Pepper sauce, Avocado, Diced Green Onion, Diced Tomatoes, Diced Jalapeno’s, and Shredded Lettuce. Yep, that should do it. Well, off to the kitchen… Now that was a Very Good pairing. The Sweetness of the Corn Shell complimented the fruitiness of the wine. The spiciness of the meat complimented the spiciness of the wine and contrasted to the fruitiness of the wine. The fattiness of the cheese tamed the tannins and allowed its boldness to complement the body of the wine. The Ghost Pepper sauce was a surprise. Normally spiciness and alcohol combine to produce even more heat on the palate, but that did not happen here. The fattiness of the meal tamed the heat just enough to allow the complexity of the sauce to complement the body of the wine. The fattiness of the Avocado combined with the fattiness of the meal allowed the sweetness of the Avocado to complement the fruitiness of the wine. The Diced Green Onions complimented the spiciness of the wine and contrasted to the fruitiness of the wine. The herbaceousness of the Green Onion complimented the mild herbaceousness of the wine. The sweetness of the Diced Tomatoes was complimented by the fruitiness of the wine and complimented the acidity of the wine. The herbaceousness of the Diced Jalapeno’s complimented the herbaceousness of the Diced Green Onion which together complimented the herbaceousness of the wine. The heat of the Jalapeno’s was minimal due to the heat of the Ghost Pepper sauce. The cool and crisp Shredded Lettuce contrasted to the heat of the meal and the alcohol of the wine. My Friends, most of you know me and you all know that I do not give 5’s, I give 4’s so that those wines that are truly worthy of a 5 will be the few to receive them. This is a 5. This is an Old World Bordeaux that absolutely deserves a space in your cellar. Enjoy. Thank You Laetitia for creating such a Lovely and Delicious Bordeaux. Cheers 🍷
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