Review: Wines of Fronsac, Fall 2026 Releases
Being a lesser-known appellation next door to Pomerol and Saint-Émilion is being the youngest sibling in a family of iconic overachievers: nobody’s exactly cruel about it. However, they constantly introduce you as “the other one” at wine bars or dinner parties. Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac have spent centuries in this position, making perfectly serviceable Merlot-driven wines while everyone else hoovered up the oxygen in the room, the cellar real estate, and the fees at the auction houses. The blend is an expected right-bank ensemble cast: Merlot as the shining star, front and center, and everyone else filing in for supporting roles as needed. The wines are built with enough structure to reward time in a cellar, assuming you’re the type of person who buys wine and has the discipline not to drink it immediately, which, statistically, you probably aren’t. Consider what follows a starter kit: a GPS and gentle shove into a neighborhood deserving more foot traffic than it gets.
2024 Chateau Dalem Fronsac Bordeaux – 90% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Malbec, which is pretty much nowhere to be found in the blend, as the Cabernet Franc beefs up the Merlot with very little subtlety. What lands in the glass, though, is noteworthy: soft herbal notes with red berries and plum steeped in something jammy, a little bit of licorice and a mineral thread running throughout that is increasingly pronounced on the finish. Quite an excellent buy at this asking price, though. A- / $25
2022 Chateau de La Dauphine Fronsac Bordeaux – 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc. The aromas as it hits the glass are instantly recognizable as a roll call of greatest hits: raspberry, cherry, spice and cola are abundant, and it takes a few moments in the glass to resolve and sort itself out. On the palate, it’s filled with complexity: juicy at first then chalky, somehow fresh and fruity while flashing a minerality preventing monotony. Delightful on the finish, but a bit too short. A- / $30
2023 Château Hauchat Merlot Fronsac Bordeaux – Juicy with red fruit accompanied by a slightly savory note mid-palate. Well-integrated tannins and acidity provide structure, and the finish evolves into a subtle duet of dark chocolate and raspberry. Allowing this another year will only improve matters, but even right now it’s a refined and easy drinking glass. B+ / $40
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