A marvelous wine in an absolutely beautiful place. The first sip gave me goose bumps. Just such a classic Bordeaux in the best sense. No decant, slight chill, this is ready to go and fully integrated. Blackcurrant on the nose and palate. Incredible freshness and acid. Completely mouth filling and balanced. Certainly one of the best Bordeaux’s I’ve had in a long time. Amazing with grilled dry aged ribeyes. — 5 years ago
Wild strawberries, tart red cherries, raspberries and pomegranates enveloped by fully bloomed red roses and violets. Some iron and red clay, cinnamon and nutmeg, black tea. Med plus acid, med tannin, med plus finish. So expressive. — 6 years ago
Following the Mouton and Palmer, this seemed fully mature, resolved tannins, but lovely balance and freshness. — 7 years ago
1959 vintage. Cork fully saturated (no seepage) but held together during removal using a Durand. Looked like a red Burgundy during decanting while throwing some sed but not nearly as much as expected. Beautiful, unified nose of age. Surprising amount of fruit with plenty of internal structure intact for balance. Simply phenomenal. — 2 years ago
The 2019 La Conseillante is elegant and nuanced, just as it was from barrel. All of the freshness and energy that was present en primeur comes through in the bottle. There is an element of sophistication, of reserve, that needs time to be fully expressive. The 2019 is a wine of linear precision more than volume or density. It should age exquisitely for many years to come. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, February 2022)
— 3 years ago
From a great old looking bottle with a mid shoulder fill. Cork is fully saturated and the crud under the capsule had formed a strong seal. Slow-ox’d for a few hours, then decanted for an hour or two before taken to L’Escargot in Carmel. Amber tawny rims with a reddish tawny core. Crazy nose right from the start. Notes of sweet black cherries, tobacco leaf, plums, black pepper, ash and crusty wood, pencil shavings, some just unwrapped cigar and some menthol. Silky in the mouth with firm structure and soft but present acidity. Long and memorable finish. Outstanding performance over several hours. — 5 years ago
Tasted blind. Tawny color, translucent with amber rims. Notes of black cherry, cedar, some spice and a little barnyard floor. Sweet fruit in the mouth, with tannins fully resolved. Guessed 1955 Calon Segur. Perfect looking bottle, the cork revealed this bottle was reconditioned by the Chateau in 2000. — 7 years ago
Fully resolved and elegant — 7 years ago
Blackberries. Olives. Fully mature but plenty of fruit here. — 3 years ago
2019 vintage. Thought some of the previous 2014-2018 vintages were ready steady go! from the onset but this may take the cake. Light-medium body. Nose is über-giving with herbs and baking spices. Finish of 40+ seconds highlighting a cocoa/baking chocolate baseline supplemented with ripe dark cherry and plum. Tannins fully in check-for now. — 3 years ago
Hard to fully enjoy as the outdoor temp was 95 but still delicious. — 5 years ago
Incredibly youthful. Lots of dark brambly fruit, plum, some leather. Fully resolved, moderately long finish, great balance. 25 years young! — 7 years ago
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The bottle of 2014 Pontet-Canet showed better than the previous one at the 10-Year-On tasting in London. This offers much more restraint on the nose. It's quite precise, with greater mineralité seeping through the black cherry and cassis fruit. The palate has a sorbet-fresh entry, fine tannins and a silky sheen. The oak is fully subsumed after a decade, plus there is a little more depth on the finish compared to previous showings. This is a fine example of the vintage, and bottles should drink well over the next 12 to 15 years. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the Pontet-Canet dinner in Washington DC. (Neal Martin, Vinous, June 2024)
— a year ago