2021 Chateau Branaire Ducru - Grand Cru Classe St. Julien AC

Decanter.com – 94 pts – GH: *Green peppercorns, menthol and sightly herbal aspects on the nose. Smooth and silky, a shot of bright high acidity with a balancing creamy touch to the texture. Tannins are barely there, but do give the frame which nicely carries the flavours. Really charming and fruity, great energy if not masses of weight and depth. Clean and precise fruit expression. A great effort in 2021.* - 11/2023

Falstaff Magazin – 91 pts – PM: *Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, dezente Ockerrandaufhellung. Frische Zwetschken, dunkle Kirschen, zart tabakig, kandierte Orangenzesten, etwas Milchschokolade. Mittlere Komplexität, etwas Nugat, Kirschen, reife Tannine, mineralisch und anhaftend, im Moment nur mittlere Länge, trocknet etwas aus.* - 03/2024

Vinum Magazin – 18/20 pts: *Besonders verführerische, blumige Aromatik; feingliederiger, schlanker, finessenreicher Wein mit ellenlangem, sehnig fruchtigem Ausklang, perfekt ausbalanciert, wird zu einem besonders harmonischen, erfrischen liebenswürdigen Wein heranreifen.*

WeinWisser – 17,5+/20pts – GL, TW: *66 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 22 % Merlot, 6,5 % Cabernet Franc, 5,5 % Petit Verdot. Filigran rotbeeriges Bouquet, Schattenmorelle, Himbeergelee, ein Hauch Thymian und zartes Veilchenparfüm. Am mittleren Gaumen weiche Textur, stützende Rasse, fein nervig, körniges Extrakt und asketischer Körper. Im gebündelten Finale Preiselbeersaft, Tabakblatt und fein sandige Adstringenz. Hat bewusst einen klassischen Weg gewählt und kann noch zulegen.* – 04/2022

JancisRobinson.com – 16/20pts – TP: *66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 6.5% Cabernet Franc, 5.5% Petit Verdot. Mid ruby. Bready summer-pudding fruit on the nose with a hint of pipe tobacco and iodine. Acid frames the fruit and keeps everything very compact and linear. There are herbal tones but this is not underripe. Chalky tannins persist on the finish – this will need a few years before approaching.* - 11/2023

Vinous.com – 94 pts – AG: *Open and explosive in its aromatics, the 2021 Branaire-Ducru is deep, layered and super-expressive, promising to evolve well for many years to come. The Cabernets are especially evident in the wine's remarkable savory character. Black cherry, lavender, graphite, and dried herbs lend considerable nuance. In 2021, Branaire-Ducru is not quite as charming as it often is at the outset, so readers should plan on being patient.* - 12/2023

Vinous.com – 92 pts – NM: *The 2021 Branaire Ducru, one of the smallest crops in recent years (32.5hL/ha) was bottled in early June. It has a clean and precise bouquet: blackberry, cedar, light pencil box scents and just a faint touch of undergrowth. It's certainly classic in style, yet displays more precision than you would have found in a Branaire a decade ago. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins. Again, black fruit comes to the fore—graphite-infused black fruit, with a little more salinity than I recall from barrel. There’s a pleasing strictness here; the 2021 is linear, without the frills of the 2019 or 2020. Yet for those seeking traditional claret, this will fit the bill perfectly. Drink it over the next 20-25 years.* - 11/2023

Thewinecellarinsider.com – 94 pts – JL: *Fresh, vibrant, elegant, and almost discreet, the wine is classic in style, in a good way. The nose, with its display of flowers, tobacco, cherries, kirsch and hints of cocoa shines with little effort. The medium-bodied palate, with its profile of sweet, ripe, red cherries, comes along with gentle accents of leafy herbs, cocoa, espresso and soft-textured, plums. The wine drink well young, yet age and develop for 2 decades. The wine blends 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 6.5% Cabernet Franc, and 5.5% Petit Verdot. Drink from 2025-2050.* - 03/2024