Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou 2006

JAMES SUCKLING: "Subtle aromas of currants, blueberries and minerals. Full body with super-integrated tannins and a fine, fine finish. I love the texture to this wine, and it’s just starting to show you the true quality it has. Start drinking. One of the top wines of this vintage. Better in 2016."

DECANTER: "This is not quite as silky smooth and rich as the 2005 and yet it's full of promise. It feels young, with tannins that are still pulsating around the dark berry fruits, joined by eucalyptus and cigar box notes through the finish. With clear depth of flavour, it's a classically framed St Julien, full of dark cheer, a winter wine for nights by the fire with good food and good friends."

WINE SPECTATOR: "Very perfumed and beautiful, showing blackberry and raspberry aromas, with hints of vanilla. Deep and complex. Full-bodied, with chewy tannins and a long, powerful finish. Excellent for the vintage. Best after 2015. 10,500 cases made."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Tasted at the château, the 2006 Ducru Beaucaillou has a precocious bouquet for the vintage: opulent ripe dark cherry, red plum and cassis fruit, mint and hints of vanilla pod. It is very well defined and very sensual. The palate is medium-bodied with a sweet opening, plenty of dark cherry and blackberry, Hoisin, a touch of cedar and again mint. There is fine depth here, surprisingly young with a dense, slightly tarry finish that suggests another 2-3 years will be appropriate."

WEINWISSER: "Warmes Bouquet, frisch gebackenes Schwarzbrot, nussige Konturen und frisch gerösteter Kaffee, wunderschöne Cabernet-Expression. Dichter, fleischiger Gaumen, mehlige Zunge, enorm fordernde, aber durchaus noble Tannine. Neigt zu einer gewissen Männlichkeit und gleicht so dem 96er. Kann und wird noch zulegen."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Still young, this is a strict style of Ducru Beaucaillou that is going to take perhaps another decade before the tannins subside. The fruit is ripe, there is concentration, length and intensity, but the tannins are quite firm. This can be seen as a modern version of an old, classic vintage."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "This is that rare Bordeaux Cabernet that comes close in style to a Napa Cabernet. The character comes from the mint aromas and medicinal edge, formed from new wood aging. At this stage in its development, the wine is powerful, but closed and tight. However, it is possible to taste the ripe perfumes and the black cherry juice flavors that come through the vanilla."

JEB DUNNUCK: "The 2006 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is a rich, masculine styled effort that’s just now at the early stages of its drink window. Classic Cabernet notes of blackcurrants, toasty oak, graphite, truffle, and a touch of cedarwood all emerge from the glass, and it’s rich, medium to full-bodied, concentrated, and structured. It takes a solid hour in a decanter to open up, has lots of sweet tannins, beautiful balance, and a great finish. It has another 20-30 years of prime drinking ahead of it."

FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, jugendliche Reflexe, violetter Rand, zarter Wasserrand. In der Nase feinwürzige Nuancen, einladende dunkle Beerenfrucht, Brombeeren. Am Gaumen saftig, wirkt fast leichtfüßig, das Holz ist perfekt integriert, fast unmerkbar, ein sehr eleganter und runder Wein, frisch strukturiert, wird eine sehr gute Lagerfähigkeit entwickeln, fällt aber auch jetzt schon sehr trinkanimierend und zugänglich aus, schokoladiger Abgang, feine Karamellnuancen. Trinken/lagern +20."