2015 Chateau Pontet Canet - 5eme Cru Pauillac

04/16: *Année faste pour le cru vedette de sa catégorie qui se paie le luxe de mettre toute sa récolte ou presque en grand vin. L’échantillon dégusté au château mérite les plus vifs compliments : une robe noire, un nez d’une harmonie et d’une liberté aromatique uniques de nos jours, tout en restant fermement dans le type pauillac, une texture d’un velouté extraordinaire, au toucher de bouche soyeux qui rappellerait les plus grands pinots noirs et une longueur rare. Un grand raisin issu d’une viticulture intègre qui récompense les efforts et l’audace de l’équipe et un vin l’exprimant à la perfection. Reste à l’élever avec le même perfectionnisme et la même recherche de pureté et d’intégrité.* (97-98/100)

Decanter.com – 95 pts – PK: *Ruby with a purple rim, no second wine made starting with this vintage. More expressive and opulent aromatics than in 2014, with ripe red and black fruit. The irresistible, juicy palate with creamy texture recalls the 2010, but lacks the same tension and structure. It resembles the 2009, enjoyed over lunch after the morning vertical, but with more focus and fruit purity, including primary blackberry, plum and cassis. Long finish. Aged 50% new oak , 35% amphora.* - 09/2021

Falstaff Magazin – 96 pts – PM: *Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Feinwürzig unterlegte dunkle Waldbeeren, Nuancen von Heidelbeeren und Brombeeren mischen sich mit den typischen Cassisnuancen, tabakig-kräuterwürzig unterlegt, winzige animalische Einsprengsel. Komplex und stoffig,, reife schwarze Kirschen, feine, sehr gut integrierte Tannine, saftig und mit einer angenehmen Frische ausgestattet, verbindet Finesse mit Kraft, hier spürt man erstmal den Schliff der Amphoren. 2015 ist das Jahr, wo die Zäsur im Weingarten erstmals richtig im Wein angekommen ist, auch wurde ab nun kein Zweitwein mehr hergestellt. (2025 -2070)* - 01/2022

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate - 96+pts - LPB: *A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, 50% of the 2015 Pontet-Canet was aged in new French oak, while 15% was matured in second fill barrels and 35% in cement amphorae. Deep garnet-purple in color, the nose opens with exuberant black currants, red currants and black raspberries scents plus an evocative undercurrent of cedar chest, dusty earth, cloves, chocolate box and Provence herbs with a fragrant waft of lavender. Medium to full-bodied and built like a brick house with very firm, wonderfully grainy tannins and black and red fruits charged with the most singular energy, it finishes with incredible persistence and depth.* -02/18

Vinum Magazin – 20/20pts: *Auf die Gefahr hin, uns zu wiederholen: Zu diesem Wein, der sich jeder Katalogisierung entzieht, muss man entweder schweigen oder einen ganzen Roman verfassen. Beeindruckend ist nicht nur seine gleichsam metaphysische Grösse, sondern auch seine untadelige technische Dimension. Ein Monument.* - 06/2018

04/16: *Extrem dunkles Purpur mit lila und violetten Reflexen. Recht offenes, ausladendes Bouquet, delikate
Zedernholznoten, Kaffee, Backpflaumen, zeigt eine schöne Terroirsüsse an. Im Gaumen mit einem
kernig-pfeffrigen Extrakt aufwartend, hat Adstringenz und weist eine gesunde Tannin-Adstringenz auf. Er hat
etwa gleich viel Muskeln wie Fleisch und wird einen klassischen, vielleicht gar etwas traditionell anmutenden,
geduldigen Pontet-Canet abgeben.* (18/20)

WeinWisser – 18/20pts – RG: *Extrem dunkles Purpur mit lila und violetten Reflexen. Recht offenes, ausladendes Bouquet mit delikaten Zedernholznoten, Kaffee und Backpflaumen; zeigt eine schöne Terroirsüsse an. Im Gaumen mit einem kernigpfeffrigen Extrakt, der eine gesunde Tannin- Adstringenz aufweist. Er hat etwa gleich viel Muskeln wie Fleisch und wird einen klassischen, vielleicht gar etwas traditionell anmutenden, geduldigen Pontet- Canet abgeben.*

JancisRobinson.com – 17+/20pts – JL: *Deep colour to the rim. Rich and concentrated but the aromatics a little blurred. Dark fruit with initially a hint of black olive. Palate supple, opulent with powerful but polished tannins. Lacks a little precision but plenty of depth and flavour and just enough freshness. Worth waiting to see how it develops.* - 09/2021

04/16: *Couleur intense et belle. Nez au fruité pur, frais et mûr. Jolie entrée en bouche caressante. Développement à la texture minutieuse, au corps fondant, très savoureux, pulpeux, délicat et puissant à la fois. Belle finale au grain fin. Assemblage : 65 % cabernet sauvignon, 30 % merlot, 3 % cabernet franc, 2 % petit verdot. Degré d'alcool : 13,5° - Production : 95 % de la récolte.* (94/100)

JamesSuckling.com - 98pts - JS: *So much floral and dark-fruit character with almonds and walnut shell. Full body and ultra-fine tannins. Powerful. Classic style with a harmony and energy. Goes on for minutes. A superb wine with great fruit. Real Bordeaux. Try in 2025.* -02/2018

Vinous.com - 97+pts - AG: *Proprietor Alfred Tesseron and winemaker Jean-Michel Comme produced an absolutely stellar Pontet-Canet in 2015. Sumptuous, racy and totally inviting, the 2015 is all class. Super-ripe dark cherry, plum, spice and exotic floral notes build as the 2015 shows off its alluring personality. Even with all of its raciness, the 2015 speaks with authority and power. Fine tannins extend the persistent, highly nuanced finish. The 2015 is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot aged 50% new oak, 4% in terra cotta and 15% in neutral oak. Tasted three times.* - 02/2018

04/16: *This is an opulent wine, very generous with forward blackberry fruits. Behind an accessible exterior,
there is a dark core of tannins, as well as a wonderful, rounded structure. There could be more acidity, though
the wine is finely balanced. It shows immediate fruit but will age well and long.* (96-98/100)

Vinous.com – 93 pts – NM: *The 2015 Pontet Canet is endowed with impressive lift and delineation on the nose of blackberry, graphite and tobacco – classic Pauillac all the way through. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannin and slightly herbal in style. The graphite-infused finish is missing a little depth and grip (like some other 2015 Pauillacs), though it seems to develop with aeration. I suspect that the 2016 will be superior. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting.* - 07/2019

Thewinecellarinsider.com – 97 pts – JL: *Deeply colored, initially you notice Cuban cigars, eucalyptus, coffee bean, flowers, blackberries, and cassis. On the palate, the wine is rich, plush, and polished with an opulence to the texture. The fruit is packed and stacked with wave after wave of mouth-coating fruits that paint every nook and cranny of your palate. There is fabulous sweetness, lift, and depth. There is no touch of heat. Even with all of this power, the wine is balanced. Completely effortless to drink, this is already sublime in your glass. But, give it a few more years in the cellar and it is only going to get better and better. An interesting point, 2015 marks the first vintage without a second wine, allowing you to experience the totality of what the entire 81-hectare vineyard produced. The wine blends 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, 13.5% ABV. Drink from 2025-2060.* - 07/2022