An especially strong effort for this estate, the 2022 Batailley exhibits aromas of dark berries, cassis, licorice and sweet soil tones, followed by a medium to full-bodied, rich and layered palate. It's a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot and the balance Petit Verdot. The Wine Advocate, Apr 28, 2023, William Kelley
Unwinding in the glass with aromas of dark berries, cherries and cassis mingled with hints of violets and licorice, framed by creamy new oak, the 2022 Beychevelle is medium to full-bodied, velvety and layered, with a fleshy core of fruit framed by rich, unusually suave and polished tannins in the context of recent vintages at this address. It's a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot, with a pH of 3.85, quite typical for this address. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Published: Apr 28, 2023
The 2022 Clerc Milon is beautiful, offering up aromas of cherries, raspberries and plums mingled with hints of pencil shavings and rose petals. Medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, it's taut and lively, with a vibrant core of fruit framed by fine, chalky tannins. Its clay-limestone terroir lends it a distinctive signature that sets it apart from the rest of the portfolio. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Published: Apr 28, 2023
Deep aromas of raspberries, cherries, crushed mint and spices preface the 2022 d'Armailhac, a medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated wine that's deep, lively and seamless, framed by powdery tannins and concluding with a penetrating finish. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Published: Apr 28, 2023
The 2022 Lafleur has turned out even better in bottle than I anticipated. Wafting from the glass with exotic aromas of mulberries, potpourri, iris, blood orange and incense, it's full-bodied, dense and layered, with a deep and multidimensional core of sweet, succulent fruit underpinned by velvety tannins, concluding with a long, expansive, rose-inflected finish. Élevage has brought a sense of harmony and classicism to the volume and richness that were already apparent en primeur, delivering a Lafleur for the ages. The Wine Advocate, Mar 07, 2025, William Kelley
One of the vintage's most powerful, muscular wines is the 2022 Lynch-Bages, a full-bodied, broad-shouldered Pauillac that unfurls in the glass with aromas of cassis, cherries, mint, pencil shavings and petroleum jelly, framed by nicely integrated new oak. Liberally extracted, its deep core of fruit is underpinned by an imposing chassis of rich, powdery tannin and lively acids. Always rather forbidding from barrel, Lynch Bages always seems to come together in bottle, and the 2022 has the makings of another success for this address. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Published: Apr 28, 2023
The 2021 Alter Ego de Palmer is a somewhat unusual blend, in that it's fully 60% Cabernet Sauvignon this year, the estate's Merlot having suffered in the April frosts. Exhibiting aromas of cherries, sweet berries and plums mingled wit hints of spices and pencil shavings, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and polished, with a charming, seamless profile founded on beautifully refined structuring tannins. Tasted twice. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley William Kelley
The 2021 Angélus unwinds in the glass to reveal aromas of dark berries, plums and cherries mingled with rose petals, forest floor, spices and pencil shavings, framed by creamy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, layered and vibrant, it's taut and structured, with a deep core of fruit, chalky tannins and a long, perfumed, vanillin-inflected finish. As readers will remember, it's a blend of fully 60% Cabernet Franc with 40% Merlot, incorporating foudres in addition to 225-liter barriques, and the rich, toasty oak signature of yesteryear is now firmly in the background, even if the wine still carries a youthful patina. The 2021's classically balanced profile will reward a bit of bottle age. The Wine Advocate, Feb 09, 2024, William Kelley
A blend of 65% Cabernet Franc and 35% Merlot, the 2021 Ausone is a strong candidate for the title of wine of the vintage. Wafting from the glass with aromas of wild blueberries and raspberries mingled with rose petals, violets, exotic spices, vine smoke and blood orange, it's full-bodied, seamless and sensual, with a satiny attack that segues into a deep, layered mid-palate of breathtaking precision and intensity without weight. Built around bright acids and ultra-refined tannins and concluding with a resonant, perfumed finish, this profound young Ausone represents the essence of this great limestone terroir. I am not in the habit of drinking six-month-old Bordeaux cask samples, but this is one wine that would have sorely tempted me to make an exception to that rule if my appointment at the estate hadn't been one of the first of the day! One of Bordeaux's greatest terroirs, perched on the edge of Saint-Émilion's limestone escarpment, Ausone comprises vineyards on the slopes (of which one, "Le Poirier," situated directly below the château, supplies the core of the assemblage) and on the walled terraces that cling to the top of the plateau. It's a sheltered mesoclimate, planted predominantly with Cabernet Franc, with at most 1.2 meters of clay above the rock. The vineyards are old, and when missing vines have been replaced, the replacements are tagged and harvested separately. In the winery, the fruit ferments in wooden vats with twice-daily délestages (rack-and-return) until alcoholic fermentation begins to subside, at which point the cap is simply moistened until the moment of décuvage and pressing. Maturation follows, in a cool former quarry hewn from the limestone, in entirely new barrels (mainly from Taransaud and Demptos) and lasts for some 20 months. The result is one of the region's most characterful and long-lived wines, endowed with striking intensity, precision and persistence. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley William Kelley
The 2021 Batailley shows promise, exhibiting aromas of cassis, plums, licorice, cigar wrapper, loamy soil and dark chocolate, followed by a medium to full-bodied, layered and charming palate built around ripe, powdery tannins. Supple and giving, it will offer a broad drinking window. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The ethereal 2021 Belair Monange shows its limestone terroir front and center in this cooler vintage, unwinding in the glass with notes of sweet cherries, minty red berries, raw cocoa and spices, followed by a medium to full-bodied, suave and polished palate that's pure, lively and mineral, concluding with a saline finish. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Feb 09, 2024
The 2021 Berliquet shows considerable promise, exhibiting aromas of cherries, wild berries, raw cocoa and rose petals, followed by a medium to full-bodied, lively and charming palate that's framed by powdery tannins and tangy acids. Concluding with a long and saline finish, this estate continues to go from strength to strength under the administration of Nicolas Audibert and his team. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Apr 29, 2022
The 2021 Beychevelle opens in the glass with notes of sweet berry compote, plums and creamy new oak, followed by a medium to full-bodied, fleshy palate with an unusually sweet core of fruit for the vintage, framed by plenty of chewy tannin, and concluding with a vanillin-inflected finish. William Kelley, Feb 2024, Wine Advocate
Having tasted the 2021 Branaire-Ducru six times over the course of a month and a half, I feel confident in saying that it is a beautiful wine that numbers among the vintage's real successes. Offering up aromas of raspberry coulis and red cherries mingled with notions of rose petals, cigar box and spices, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and seamless, with a layered core of fruit, lively acids and beautifully powdery tannins. Why is it quite so good? It isn't because a lot of wine was declassified, as around 60% of the estate's production went into the grand vin this year—a touch more than average. Rather, the key factors seem to be waiting to pick despite an alarming weather forecast; the blend itself, which emphasizes ripe Cabernet and the estate's later-ripening Merlot on clay-limestone soils; and the fact that a partially completed new winery means that Branaire already had fully 63 fermentation vats at its disposal to pick and vinify parcel by parcel. The exact composition is 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Branaire-Ducru occupies 60 hectares of deep gravel soils, in 80 or so different parcels, on the plateau of Beychevelle. Cabernet Sauvignon dominates, but plantings of Petit Verdot on good soils are also a particularity of Branaire. When the Maroteaux family purchased the estate in 1988, a new winery followed a few years later; and now, another is under construction, which will almost double the number of fermentation vats, permitting more precise parcel-by-parcel vinification (some of these vats, incidentally, were online by the 2021 harvest and are surely part of the reason why Branaire has performed so well). Winemaking is very classical, and maturation is in around 60% new oak, with three or four traditional rackings. There are no smoke and mirrors at this address, just extremely good, age-worthy Saint-Julien that's always elegant and impeccably balanced. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Brane-Cantenac shows considerable promise, exhibiting a deep bouquet of wild berries, cassis, spices and violets, followed by a medium to full-bodied, layered and impressively concentrated palate that's framed by powdery tannins, concluding with a long, mouthwatering finish. This seamless and enveloping wine is a blend of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc and the balance Carmenère and Petit Verdot. Once again, it's derived from the château's best holdings on the plateau of Brane and is maturing in entirely new barrels. The 2021 vintage is another success for Henri Lurton and his team at Brane-Cantenac. Harvest finished up here on October 7, and the grand vin emphasizes Cabernet Sauvignon from the quaternary gravel terrace of the plateau of Brane, an early-ripening, optimally situated site that has delivered a wine of impressive amplitude and texture for the vintage. Once again, Brane-Cantenac is one of the highlights of the commune—and the Médoc—this year. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
Revisited in bottle, the 2021 Calon-Ségur opens in the glass with aromas of dark berries mingled with aromas of violets, pencil shavings, lilac, Indian spices, cigar wrapper and grilled meats. Medium to full-bodied, dense and suave, with powdery tannins, lively acids and a penetratingly sapid and discreetly carnal finish, it appears to have lost a touch of aromatic precision during élevage, but it remains a compelling Calon-Ségur. The Wine Advocate, Feb 09, 2024, William Kelley
The 2021 Canon opens in the glass with a pure bouquet of raspberries, cherries and plums mingled with pretty top notes of iris, licorice, mint and sweet spices. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, it's fleshy and sensual, with a deep and seamless core of fruit framed by ultra-refined tannins, a bright spine of acidity and a long, mineral finish. With an impressively low finished pH of 3.37, it was taken out of barrel a month earlier than usual and saw no fining—as has been the case since 2010. The Wine Advocate, Feb 09, 2024, William Kelley
A strong effort that demonstrates how much progress this bottling has made over the last 10 to 15 years, the 2021 Carruades de Lafite exhibits aromas of sweet berries, pencil shavings, warm spices and nicely integrated oak. Medium to full-bodied, deep and impressively intense, it's seamless and refined, delivering plenty of Lafite character. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Apr 29, 2022
The 2021 Certan de May has also turned out nicely in bottle, bursting with attractive aromas of dark berries, cassis, licorice and fruitcake, followed by a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and dynamic palate with good depth of fruit, supple tannins and impressive length on the finish. As readers may remember, this Merlot-dominant blend incorporates fully 37% Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, a figure that reflects the vintage (which favored these varieties) as well as a tendency to replant with Cabernet rather than Merlot over the last decade. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Feb 09, 2024
A terrific achievement, the 2021 Cheval Blanc is a blend of 52% Cabernet Franc, 33% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Unfurling in the glass with aromas of raspberries and cherries mingled with notions of cigar wrapper, vine smoke, rose petals and violets, it's full-bodied, layered and concentrated, with an elegantly muscular chassis of ripe, powdery tannin and lively animating acids. Long and penetrating, this is a serious, rather structured young Cheval Blanc that will require and reward patience. One of Bordeaux's most complex terroirs, Cheval Blanc sits on the site of an ancient river delta, with (to generalize) clay-rich soils in the lower-lying parts where rivulets once flowed and gravel and sand elsewhere. This complexity is reflected, of course, in the resulting wine but also in how it is farmed and made, with thoughtful use of cover crops according to soil type and parcel-by-parcel vinification. A concerted effort is being made, moreover, to bring life back to the vineyard, with hedges of native species to act as wildlife corridors and fruit trees planted among the vines. The same attention to detail that's applied in the vineyards, for example with regard to developing and testing an in-house massal selection, is applied in the cellar, where cooperage trials are notable for their exigence. All of that shows in the glass. Cabernet dominates in the 2021 blend, and the result is a serious Cheval Blanc built for the long haul. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Clerc Milon is a success, bursting with aromas of blackberries, cassis and plums mingled with violets, tobacco leaf and nicely integrated new oak. Medium to full-bodied, layered and seamless, it's deep, fleshy and complete, with a rich core of succulent fruit, beautifully polished tannins and a long, sapid finish, it's a compelling, characterful wine that transcends the vintage. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
At 75% Merlot and fully 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Clinet contains the highest proportion of Cabernet in the blend (excepting the 2003) since at least the 1980s. Ronan Laborde harvested late, picking into mid-October, to craft a medium to full-bodied, deep and impressively seamless wine evocative of dark berries, baking chocolate, violets and spices. Concentrated and nicely integrated, it is one of the vintage's notable successes. Ronan Laborde is producing the best wines of his career at this Pomerol reference point. Some eight hectares produce Clinet, much of the vineyards being located around the château in the lieu-dit that lends it its name, complemented by a parcel by the church and another not far from the headquarters of the syndicat viticole. Today, these holdings are planted with some 80% Merlot, but before phylloxera, Cabernet Sauvignon was widely planted in this sector, and today, Laborde is replacing Merlot with Cabernet Sauvignon (he retains a parcel of old-vine Cabernet Sauvignon dating back to 1950). Vines are hedged at 1.5 meters, and cover crops help to manage water in the iron-rich clays near the château, allowing access by tractor even after recent rainfall. In the winery, Laborde now employs small stainless steel tanks that permit parcel-by-parcel vinification, and a vertical press has been the order of the day since as long ago as 2001. What's really evolved in recent years is the barrel program: oak is long-seasoned (four to five years), and some large formats have joined the classic 225-liter barriques; but above all, lighter, less impactful toasts are now chosen, meaning Clinet's 80% new oak is much more discreet in its aromatic and textural contribution than was the case a decade ago. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Cos d'Estournel is very promising, offering up rich aromas of dark berries, plums, exotic spices, loamy soil and rose petals, followed by a medium to full-bodied, deep and seamless palate that's impressively vibrant and concentrated, with powdery tannins, bright acids and a long, penetrating finish. Only 53% of the production made it into the grand vin, and the blend is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. Technical director Dominique Arangoïts reports that Cos was spared by frost and coulure at flowering, harvesting between September 23 and October 4, and fermenting a touch hotter than has been the case in recent years, at around 28-29 degrees Celsius. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
Reminiscent of a modern-day version of this estate's delicious 1999, the 2021 d'Armailhac is a terrific wine bursting with aromas of wild berries, cherries, exotic spices and rose petals. Medium to full-bodied, supple and seamless, it's fleshy and enveloping, with melting tannins and an ample core of sweet, succulent fruit. This is a pleasure-bent wine that will offer a broad drinking window. The Wine Advocate William Kelley, Apr 29, 2022
Representing some 40% of the estate's production, the 2021 La Dame de Montrose offers up aromas of sweet berries, black truffle and burning embers, followed by a medium to full-bodied, seamless and elegant palate that's pure and precise. It's a fine effort that will likely take on additional depth with élevage. This large estate overlooking the Gironde in Saint-Estèphe produces some of Bordeaux's greatest and longest-lived wines, and the last 15 or so years have seen it benefit from sustained investment. There's a brand-new winery and cellars, of course, but there's a lot of work going on in the vineyards too. When Olivier and Martin Bouygues acquired Château Montrose from the Charmolüe family in 2006, the estate included fully 17 hectares of pre-clonal vines dating back to the early 20th century, and a massale selection program has since identified 80 viable individuals, mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, for use when replanting (the same efforts are currently being lavished on Merlot, drawing on a block behind the château acquired from Phélan-Ségur). Now cover crops are being trialed, and the soils are being cultivated more superficially to avoid disrupting the microbiome. Winemaking is rather classical, with maturation in some 60% new oak. In 2021, the estate's first year in organic conversion, technical director Vincent Decup opted for three-week macerations and paid particular attention to the quality of press wine included in the blend. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Domaine de Chevalier is full of promise, bursting with aromas of dark berries and plums mingled with loamy soil, bay leaf, licorice, potpourri and spices. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and complete, its velvety attack segues into a lively, layered core, concluding with a long, nicely defined finish. Olivier Bernard doesn't think that this will surpass his 2018, but I tend to disagree. The 2021 is a blend of fully 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
A wine that will delight Médoc purists, the 2021 Ducru-Beaucaillou is a blend of fully 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Merlot and checks in at a mere 12.5% alcohol. Unwinding in the glass with aromas of dark berries, cigar wrapper, violets, loamy soil and spices, it's full-bodied, layered and velvety, with superb depth at the core, lively acids and powdery tannins. Complete and penetrating, it's a true classic, reminiscent of a modern-day version of Ducru's brilliant 1996—though today's precision winemaking means that the 2021 is unlikely to go through so long a hibernation as that vintage. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
Incorporating fully 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Duhart-Milon unwinds in the glass with aromas of sweet berries, cigar wrapper and pencil shavings. Medium to full-bodied, lively and persuasively concentrated, with beautifully refined tannins and a long, penetrating finish, it's a classy, serious wine that reflects all the progress this estate has been making over the last decade. Duhart-Milon's vineyards are later-maturing than Lafite's, and the soils are less inherently balanced: the clay-rich parts of the vineyard are richer in clay than at Lafite, and the gravel-rich parts of the vineyard are richer in gravel—whereas Lafite's predominantly gravel soils sometimes contain more than 10% clay. That explains why Duhart-Milon historically often produced leaner wines than Lafite, with less mid-palate amplitude; but a warming climate and more attention to viticultural detail (sowing cover crops, for example, in clay-rich parts of the vineyard) are mitigating these disadvantages, and recent vintages have seen this estate attain new qualitative heights. As at all the Domaines Barons de Rothschild properties, winemaking and élevage are very classical, with regular rackings and the majority of the barriques derived from the in-house cooperage (emphasizing lightly toasted Allier and Nevers oak seasoned for 24 months), and as at Lafite, Cabernet is very much in the ascendant here, something that the 2021 vintage has only amplified. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
Offering up aromas of minty cassis and blackberries mingled with loamy soil, the 2021 Echo de Lynch-Bages is a medium to full-bodied, lively and charming wine that's nicely balanced, but not especially deep or penetrating. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Gazin is a fine effort, unfurling in the glass with aromas of sweet red berries, cherries, plums, incense and raw cocoa. Medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, it's rather rich and elegantly muscular in the context of the vintage, with a deep core of fruit, powdery tannins and bright acids. Mildew pressure combined with wet conditions that made it impossible to enter the vineyard with tractors delivered low yields of only 18 hectoliters per hectare, and the grand vin is entirely Merlot this year. Directed by Christophe de Baillencourt and overseen by Mickael Obert, this 24-hectare family-owned estate is producing its best wines in the modern era. The vineyards themselves straddle two essential soil types: gravels opposite the château and deep clays on the plateau (where the estate is a neighbor of Pétrus, to which it ceded a prime bloc in the 1960s). Herbicides have never been used here, and cover crops are the order of the day since 2018. Planted with 85% Merlot, replanting is gradually introducing a touch more Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon (the latter first included in the blend with the outstanding 2019 vintage). New oak is much better integrated than was the case a decade ago, and Gazin has gained in depth and energy. The 2021 is a fine effort in a challenging year, and it's one of the vintage's more serious, structured wines. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Giscours is immensely promising and shows just how far this important estate has come in the last few years. Unwinding in the glass with aromas of cassis, dark berries, cigar wrapper, violets, sweet forest floor and burning embers, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with terrific depth at the core, ripe tannins, lively acids and a long, penetrating finish. With wines like this, we're back to a level of quality that Giscours hasn't routinely attained since the 1970s! The blend is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot and 3% Petit Verdot; and even if by the standards of the last decade, that isn't a particularly elevated percentage of Cabernet, this is nonetheless a very Cabernet-driven wine in style. Tasted six times. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Grand-Puy-Lacoste is one of the vintage's successes, wafting from the glass with aromas of cassis and raspberries mingled with notions of violets, rose petals, pencil shavings and cigar wrapper. Medium to full-bodied, with a deep, layered core of pure fruit framed by ripe acids and sweet tannins, its suave, charming profile means that it will offer a broad drinking window. A slightly lower percentage of new oak, with lighter toasts, is reflected in better barrel integration out of the gates. William Kelley, Feb 2024, Wine Advocate
A classic in the making, the 2021 Haut-Bailly wafts from the glass with aromas of dark berries and wild plums mingled with sweet spices, loamy soil, raw cocoa and violets. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and concentrated, with bright acids, ultra-refined tannins and a long, penetrating finish, it's a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, only 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. With yields of a mere 19 hectoliters per hectare, it's impressively intensely flavored despite its quintessentially elegant, classically proportioned profile. In many respects, it may represent the Cabernet-driven modern-day alter ego of the superb Merlot-dominant 1998 Haut-Bailly. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
The 2021 Haut-Batailley is a charming, medium to full-bodied, fleshy wine evocative of cassis, sweet berries, pipe tobacco and pencil shavings. Supple and succulent, with an ample core of fruit and ripe, powdery tannins, it will likely take on additional depth with further élevage. Significant replanting of fallow parcels is underway at this Pauillac estate, but those vines are currently relegated to the second wine, the Verso of Haut-Batailley. Apr 29, 2022 The Wine Advocate William Kelley
