Chateau Cap de Faugeres 2019

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Dark in color, the wine exudes licorice, smoke, dark chocolate, black pit fruits and cherries. Full-bodied, lushly textured and with a hedonistic, fruit and chocolate filled finish, this will offer a lot of bang for the buck. The wine was made from blending 80% old vine Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc."

JAMES SUCKLING: "Very pretty, smoky aromas with blackberries and cherries follow through to a medium body with integrated tannins and a fresh, clean finish. Hints of tar and lemon rind. Better at the end of 2022 and onwards."

WEINWISSER: "85 % Merlot, 15 % Cabernet Franc. Rubinrot mit aufhellendem Rand. Sattes blaubeeriges Bouquet mit frischem Thymian. Am molligen Gaumen mit sandigem Extrakt und spürbarer Castillonfrische, zarte Kerntöne. Im gebündelten Finale mit getrockneten schwarzen Beeren und Wacholder."

FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Feines Kirschkonfit, rote Waldbeeren, zart nach Kräutern und kandierten Orangenzesten. Saftig, mittlere Komplexität, feine Tannine, frisch strukturiert, mineralisch, feine Süße im Abgang, bereits gut entwickelt, vielseitig einsetzbar."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Opaque purple-black colored, the 2019 Cap de Faugères delivers intense scents of prunes, Black Forest cake and ripe, fresh blackberries with hints of Marmite toast, tapenade, damp soil and truffles. The full-bodied palate delivers mouth-coating black fruit preserves with a velvety texture and tons of freshness, finishing long and earthy."

JEB DUNNUCK: "Another perennial overachiever, Château Cap de Faugères delivers a brilliant, pleasure-bent wine year-in, year out. Their 2019 offers a juicy, up-front, savory, already complex style as well as notes of red and black fruits, new leather, herbes de Provence, and dried flowers. Mouth-filling, nicely structured, and medium-bodied, give it a year or two to shed some tannins and enjoy through 2029."