Premier

The 2019 Chateau de Lamarque wine has a tightly wound bouquet leaning towards the red side of the fruit spectrum, touches of wild mint emerging with aeration leading to a somewhat playful nose. The palate is medium-bodied with a very satisfyingly saline entry. This Lamarque wine evokes an estuary scene with oyster sheds, persistent with a tangy, graphite tinged finish. Undoubtedly one of the best de Lamarque wines that I have encountered from barrel.

On the edges of Haut-Médoc as it heads towards St Julien, this increasingly impressive estate has delivered a complex, well balanced wine in 2019. High levels of Petit-Verdot among the highest in the AOC give not just a deep color but also an impressively spiced chocolate feel, with acidity that leads the palate upwards on the finish and imparts some clear austerity. 33% new oak. 2.6pH, IPT87. Drinking Window 2024 – 2040

95 points JAMES SUCKLING
94 points VINOUS, Neal Martin
92 points DECANTER, Jane Anson

The 1994 Chateau de Valandraud Grand Cru is a extraordinarily rich wine is an undeniable success. This Chateau de Valandraud wine is magnificently concentrated, it has pronounced aromas of blackcurrants and young cherries, later developing mocha aromas. The predominance of this St.-Émilion wine is the Merlot grape lends it its suave, seductive character in the mouth.

The 1994 Chateau de Valandraud Grand Cru wine has a blend of 70% Merlot and 30% Cab Franc.

93 points James Suckling
92 points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
91 points Wine Spectator

The 2019 Chateau Doyac is structured, with firm tannins and layers of licorice and black coffee flavors. This Doyac 2019 wine looks extremely powerful and at the same time light and lively.

The Chateau Doyac has a thirty hectare estate, which is almost all in one plot, is in a privileged position on the limestone plateau in Saint Seurin de Cadourne in the Haut Médoc, immediately to the north of Saint Estèphe.

This 2019 Chateau Doyac wine has a blend of Merlot 64 % and Cabernet sauvignon 36 %.

The 2014 Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou is one of the richest, most explosive wines of the year. This St-Julien wine has fabulous aromas of crushed berries such as blackberries and blackcurrants, not to mention spices. Wet earth and cedar, too. Complex. Full-bodied, yet agile and complete. A dense center palate. Ultra-round tannins. Everything in the right balance. The 2014 Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou wine is a quintessentially Saint Julien.

99 points James Suckling
96 points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
96 points Wine Enthusiast

The 2015 Chateau Durfort Vivens wine is firm and dry, this wine blossoms quickly with its delicious fruit and penetrating acidity. This Chateau Durfort Vivens wine has fine tannins sustain this black-currant and berry fruit along with the complex texture and structure. Produced from biodynamic grapes, the wine has great potential.

This is the greatest wine ever made here. Incredible depth of fruit and power yet always polished and in reserve. Super depth of fruit. Layered. Amazing. Made from biodynamically-grown grapes.

97 points Wine Enthusiast
96 points James Suckling
92 points Decanter

The 2019 Chateau Dufort Vivens is a brilliant Margaux wine. Unwinding in the glass with aromas of blackberries, licorice, sweet soil tones, spices and rose petals. This Chateau Durfort Vivens is a full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with a fleshy core of fruit, rich, powdery tannins and a lively spine of acidity. It concludes with a long and penetrating finish. The blend of this wine is dominated by fully 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, which lends the wine immense nobility.

A polished, sophisticated Bordeaux wine. This 2019 Chateau Durfort Vivens was fermented in a combination of vat and amphora. This Margaux wine feels a bit light. The 2019 vintage is among 2/3ds in new oak and 1/3rd in terracotta. Inky dark fruit, grilled herbs, lavender, pine, spice notes and a range of string Cabernet inflections are some of the signatures.

96 points Wine Advocate
95 points James Suckling
94 points Vinous

The 2018 Chateau Ferran wine has a deep garnet-purple color. This 2018 Chateau Ferran opens with expressive notes of black cherries, mulberries, warm cassis and redcurrant jelly plus wafts of tapenade, truffles and lavender. Medium to full-bodied, it has a firm, fine-grained texture and loads of freshness supporting the bright fruit, finishing with great length.

This is a traditional premium Bordeaux blend based on Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes from the sub-region of Pessac-Léognan in Graves. The wine is beautifully balanced and intense with fine-grained velvety tannins. The estate is planted to 47 acres of red grapes consisting of: 70% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot. Plus 9 acres of white grapes: 65% Sauvignon Blanc & 35% Semillon

95 points James Suckling
93 points Wine Advocate
92 points Wine Spectator

A hold onto your hat wine, the 2015 Chateau Figeac is pure perfection. The 2015 Chateau Figeac wine has adeep purple color is followed by a huge nose of crème de cassis, black raspberries, smoked earth, and graphite. This Figeac wine is followed by a full-bodied, opulent and incredibly concentrated Saint-Emilion that has everything in the right places, no hard edges, thrilling purity of fruit, and a great, great finish. This 2015 Chateau Figeac wine is one of those rare gems that carries huge intensity and richness, yet still glides across the palate with no sense of weight or heaviness. This 2015 Chateau Figeac is a Cellar Selection wine which has enormous potential, with great tannins and fruit.

The 2015 Chateau Figeac wine has a blend of 43% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc. Drinking Window 2023 – 2042.

100 points Decanter
98 points Wine Enthusiast
97 points James Suckling

The 2019 Chateau Fombrauge is a gorgeous wine that shines on all account. This Chateau Fombrauge is another sweetly fruited, sexy Saint-Emilion with loads of black fruits, tobacco leaf, graphite, chocolate, and violet aromas and flavors. It packs tons of fruit on the palate as well as no hard edges, remarkable purity of fruit, silky tannins, and a great finish.

Chateau Fombrauge is one of the oldest estates in Saint-Émilion. The magnificent property has a charterhouse dating from the 17th century. Under the leadership of the Dumas de Fombrauge family, Chateau Fombrauge has become a real model for Bordeaux viticulture. This Bernard Magrez property shines today as one of the most beautiful of Saint-Emilion.

95 points Jeb Dunnuck
94 points Vinous

The 2019 Chateau Fourcas Dupre wine has a deep garnet-purple color. This 2019 Chateau Fourcas Dupre charges out of the gate with bold, expressive scents of baked blueberries, crushed black plums and cassis with hints of sandalwood, pencil shavings and menthol plus a waft of aniseed. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is charged with wonderful energy, featuring bright, black, crunchy fruit and a velvety texture, finishing with fantastic freshness.

In the Médoc history, vines already appear in the place called Fourcas in the eighteenth century, as evidenced by the cartographic work of Belleyme, under Louis XV. Fourcas Dupre took its name in 1843, when Maître Jean Antoine Dupre became the owner. Since 1970, the Pages family has maintained the same state of mind meticulousness, know-how and passion.

This 2019 Chateau Fourcas Dupre wine has a blend of 50/50 Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with a tiny bit of Petit Verdot.

93 points Wine Enthusiast
93 points Wine Advocate
91 points James Suckling

The 2018 Chateau Giscours is always a significant wine. This Chateau Giscours latest release with a powerful wine while also stylish black fruits fits into a well-regarded tradition. This great Margaux wine harmoniously combines power and finesse with exceptional ageing potential. During the tasting this wine delights with its sweetness, its enveloping tannins and its aromatic intensity, underpinned by superb freshness.

This 2018 Chateau Giscours has a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (55%), Merlot (39%), and Petit Verdot (6%).

97 points James Suckling
96 points Wine Enthusiast
95 points Decanter

The 2018 Chateau Gloria wine has a deep garnet purple colored. Aromatic black fruit, finely scented without excess sweetness or ripeness. This Chateau Gloria wine is full-bodied with a firm texture of ripe, grainy tannins. This St-Julien wine has a lively line cutting through the dense, savory layers, finishing on a lingering spicy note. A very classy St Julien wine that may warrant a higher score down the line.

This Chateau was created in the 1950’s by the late Henri Martin who was also the regisseur of Chateau Latour. Along with big brother Saint Pierre, the quality here has improved massively in the last few years and this is a top St Julien performer these days. Chateau Gloria is fast becoming one of the most exciting insider wines of the entire Bordeaux region, and that rare species of a non-classified St-Julien.

This 2018 Chateau Gloria wine has a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Usually St Julien’s best value.

94 points Decanter
94 points James Suckling
94 points Wine Spectator

The 2019 Chateau Grand Puy Ducasse wine is class personified. Just as in barrel, from bottle Grand-Puy Ducasse possesses terrific freshness and energy in place of the heavy, extracted style that was the norm just a few years ago. Readers will find a Pauillac endowed with tons of transparency and tons of sheer class. The 2019 Chateau Grand Puy Ducasse is wonderfully sophisticated in every way.

The Grand Vin of the property, the 2019 vintage of the Chateau Grand Puy Ducasse wine is made from Cabernet Sauvignon (53%), supplemented with Merlot (47%).

96 points Wine Enthusiast
95 points James Suckling
95 points Vinous

A beautiful Pauillac, the 2018 Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste has a classic nose of ripe blackcurrants, scorched earth, cedarwood, and tobacco. This Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste wine carries to a medium to full-bodied 2018 offering wonderful balance, ripe, polished tannins, and gorgeous purity of fruit. A Red wine that grows on you with time in the glass, it has building mid-palate depth and tannins, again, terrific balance, remarkable purity of fruit, and outstanding length on the finish.

One of the most classic wines in the Left Bank in 2018, this Grand Puy Lacoste is super-impressive right out of the gate. Ultimately a wine of tremendous class that remains restrained and aristocratic in breeding. The blend has a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon (78%) whose character and charm so perfectly express the richness and quality of this distinguished terroir.

96 points Vinous
95 points Decanter
94 points James Suckling

The 2016 Chateau Haut Bages Liberal wine has turned out beautifully. Rose petals, lavender and sweet red cherry are some of the notes that grace this fine, translucent Pauillac wine. This Chateau Haut Bages Liberal wine has a medium in body and precise, with exquisite finesse and nuance, the 2016 is incredibly expressive today. This 2016 Chateau Haut-Bages Libéral is a fabulous showing from proprietor Claire Villars Lurton. You would not describe this as a potentially exciting Pauillac, but I suspect it will be delicious once in bottle. Drink this wine from 2025.

The Liberal family has headed Chateau Haut Bages Liberal since the beginning of the 18th century. Over time, these fine connoisseurs have brought together the best terroirs in Pauillac. This grand cru on the left bank of Bordeaux has been owned by the Villars family since 1983, who has restored Chateau Haut Bages Liberal to its former glory by undertaking a total reworking of their vinification tools and orienting their vineyard management towards sustainable viticulture.

95 points James Suckling
94 points Wine Spectator
93 points Wine Enthusiast

The 2017 Chateau Haut Bages Liberal wine is dense, powerful and quite rich. This Chateau Haut Bages Liberal wine presents a beautiful aromatic freshness, a dense tannic structure as well as a rare elegance and balance. The 2017 Chateau Haut Bages Liberal wine is made from a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (70%), Merlot (30%).

The Liberal family has headed Chateau Haut Bages Liberal since the beginning of the 18th century. Over time, these fine connoisseurs have brought together the best terroirs in Pauillac. This grand cru on the left bank of Bordeaux has been owned by the Villars family since 1983, who has restored Chateau Haut Bages Liberal to its former glory by undertaking a total reworking of their vinification tools and orienting their vineyard management towards sustainable viticulture.

94 points James Suckling
93 points Wine Spectator
92 points Wine Enthusiast