Château de Fargues 2003

Wine Advocate-Parker :
The 2003 de Fargues offers 132-grams-per-liter residual sugar and an alcohol level of 13.92%. The grapes rapidly accumulated sugar, so they had to pick quickly, lest the sugar content ran out of control. Consequently, the harvest was concentrated in one intense week from September 19-25. Contrasting this directly against the 2005 and 2007, there is clearly not the same degree of definition and clarity. There is a touch of beeswax and honeysuckle but it needs more complexity. The palate has fine viscosity and spiciness on the entry - orange zest, mandarin and dried apricot at its heart. There is a pleasing fatness and corpulence, but though the finish is nicely balanced, it does not "take off" like the 2005 or 2007. Tasted April 2013.