95 WINE ENTHUSIAST: "This wine is rich, with generous black plum and berry fruits. It has a structure that is full, ripe and that will sustain the fruitiness of the wine over many years. The sensation is of velvet, with some force behind it. This remarkable wine will develop well over the medium term and then age for many years. Drink from 2022."
18 JANCIS ROBINSON: "40% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc, 10% Petit Verdot. 50% new oak. Mushy red fruit that reminds me of great Pinot. Fantastic sweet vanilla oak and really broad, brooding nose. The palate doesn’t quite match the nose for complexity – but that may well come, and the balance is really accomplished – supple tannins, medium body, high, integrated acid. But it’s the nose that really distinguishes this wine. Tremendous. (RH)"
92-93 JAMES SUCKLING: "An aromatic wine with exceptional delicacy and suppleness for the vintage, featuring blackberry, mineral, spice and flower character. Very fine tannins. Seamless structure. It’s a wine with a pleasant savory, fruity character that makes you want to drink it. Harmonious."
93 THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Already showing its tobacco, forest floor and cassis filled charms, this elegantly styled, forward, already drinkable wine offers sweet, fresh, plums, cocoa and smooth textures in the finish. Give it 2-4 years and this should be even more charming."
90-92 THE WINEADVOCATE: "A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, this biodynamically farmed vineyard (a rarity, but increasing in the Bordeaux viticulture), had tiny yields of 15 hectoliters per hectare. This doesn’t translate into super concentration, but this is certainly an outstanding effort in an extremely difficult vintage. The wine has a dense purple color, and classic creme de cassis, licorice and mocha and espresso roast notes that Pontet-Canet has displayed recently. The wine is medium-bodied, possesses excellent purity, equilibrium and sweet, but noticeable tannin. This is by no means at the level of the great vintages that have been so common of late from this incredible property on the Plateau of Pauillac across from Mouton Rothschild, but it’s certainly one of the vintage’s more noteworthy efforts. Give it 2-3 years of bottle age and drink it over the following 15 or so years."
