2016 Chateau Margaux - 1er Cru Classe Margaux

Decanter.com – 97 pts – AH: *Refined and typically elegant, 2016 Margaux adds great depth, structure and concentration to the mix. This is a wine to drink in 30-40 years! Only 28% of the production made it into the grand vin and in 2016 much of the Merlot was left out of the final bland. The result is an intense, mineral, black fruit-driven wine with pronounced floral and leafy hints, smooth, ripe tannins and layers of subtle oak.* - 12/2021

Falstaff Magazin - 97pts - PM: *Dunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, dezente Randaufhellung, deutliche Edelholzwürze, Nuancen von reifen Herzkirschen, floraler Touch, frische Orangenzesten, ein Hauch Zedern. Saftig, rotbeerig, feine Extraktsüße, gut integrierte Tannine, im Abgang, etwas Nougat, ein Hauch von Karamell, ein eher leichtfüßiger, eleganter Jahrgang, der etwas früher antrinkbar sein wird.* - 05/2017

Vinum Magazin – 19,5/20pts: *Grosse aromatische Komplexität, besonders eleganter, seidiger Auftakt, langsame Entwicklung über einem Tanningerüst von geradezu unglaublichem Schliff, saftiger, voller, sehr langer ausklang; herrlich einmal mehr.* - 06/2019

Weinwisser - 19,5/20pts - GL: *94 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 3 % Cabernet Franc, 2 % Merlot, 1 % Petit Verdot, nur 28 % Grand Vin. Purpurgranat mit violettem Rand. Dichtes Parfüm mit viel Veilchen und Cranberry, dahinter rote Kirsche. Am Gaumen mit seidiger Textur, wunderschön reifem Tannin und zarter Adstringenz. Im langen Finale mit viel Margaux- Eleganz, reinstem Himbeermark, Preiselbeeren und feiner Würze. Besticht durch seine royale Art. Ganz grosser Margaux, der im Bouquet an den grandiosen 1985er erinnert.*

JancisRobinson.com – 18,5/20pts – JR: *Tasted blind. Big, bold and very ripe on the nose. With a hint of yeast extract. Then savour and sinew. Masses of compact tannin. This wine needs time to expand. At the moment it’s all confined in a tiny space. Chalky chew on the end. Racy.* - 01/2020

JamesSuckling.com - (98-99)pts - JS: *A purity of fruit marks this Margaux with lots of currant and berry character. Full body, bright acidity and round tannins. It’s a larger and more expanded style of Margaux. A wine with a heart and body. Strong.* - 04/2017
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JamesSuckling.com – 99 pts – JS: *It’s very friendly and warm on the nose showing flowers, such as roses, and red fruit. But then on the palate, it lets you know how serious it is. Full- bodied, yet reserved, extremely tight and well-formed with super polished tannins that go on for minutes. A solid and typical Margaux with all the personality and beauty in strength. Try after 2027.* - 12/2019

Vinous.com – 99 pts - AG: *A gorgeous, captivating bouquet gives the 2016 Margaux an irresistible allure. Weightless and yet wonderfully persistent, in the way only the château's wines can be, the 2016 Grand Vin is a wine of exceptional breeding and pedigree. So many wines in this vintage are obvious, but Margaux is a wine that takes time to discover, like a great book or piece of music. Shades of tobacco, cedar, mint, licorice and bright, red-toned fruit reveal themselves over time. And yet it is a sense of total harmony and seductiveness that elevates Margaux into the stratosphere in 2016.* - 12/2018

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate - (97-99)pts - NM: *The 2016 Chateau Margaux is a blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, plus 1% of Petit Verdot, representing 28% of the total production. This is the highest proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon apart from 2013, which was due to the poor Merlot. It was cropped around 50 hectoliters per hectare depending on the grape variety, for example it could be up to 65 hectoliters per hectare in some sectors. Lucid in color, it has a detailed and precise bouquet with mineral-rich blackberry, raspberry coulis and limestone scents. It feels very perfumed, though not powerful like many Grand Vins in 2016. The palate is a different creature to the aromatics. Here is the intensity of the vintage with shimmering black fruit laced with spice, a killer line of acidity and an irresistible crescendo on the finish. Then, graphite lingering on the aftertaste, a nod to Pauillac perhaps. The aftertaste is so long you could probably write a letter to your friend
enthusing about this wine before the aftertaste fades. Doubtless it is destined to be compared to the magnificent 2015 Château Margaux and to be truthful, there's a hair's breadth between them. In a word: crystalline.* - 04/2017
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Vinous.com – 98pts - NM: *The 2016 Château Margaux has an intense bouquet of blackberry, briar, crushed stone and subtle cedar aromas that enrapture the senses; hints of pencil box and sous-bois emerge with time. The harmonious palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and a fine bead of acidity, and a touch of bitterness lends tension on the finish. Impressive – very impressive. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting.* - 01/2020

Thewinecellarinsider.com – 99 pts – JL: *A bright, red, fresh vintage, the wine provides lift, energy and a nice pop in the red berries. Silky, elegant, lifted and long, there is a gorgeous purity to the black raspberry, black currant and red berry palate. You are going to need to wait for this beauty to develop, as the wine has a lot of structure and freshness that needs to round out. The wine was made from a blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot.* - 09/2021