Chateau Beausejour Duffau-Lagarrosse 2015

JAMES SUCKLING: "This is extraordinary. There has never been a wine like this here since the famous 1990 or underrated 1989. Violets, flowers, stones and limestone. Oyster-shell undertones. Full-bodied, muscular and so structured. A phenomenal wine that reminds me of the great Bordeaux of the 1950s. Try in 2026."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Here is a wine that has jumped in score each time I've tasted it. And for good reason. Deep in color, the wine pops with roses, smoke, licorice, herbs, truffle, dark red pit fruits, and wet earth. Concentrated, opulent and bordering on decadent, this has just exploded since bottling. There are layers of depth, fruit, rocks, and tannins that are just great to explore as the wine hits your palate. Length, purity, complexity, and sensuality is a great combination, and you find that in spades here."

JEB DUNNUCK: "From a bottle purchased here in the United States, the 2015 Beausejour Duffau-Lagarrosse is a wine that should be purchased by the case (which is what I intend to do). This incredible blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc offers sensational purity in its crème de cassis, blueberry, graphite, lead pencil, licoice and forest floor-driven aromas and flavors. This is a big, rich, opulent wine, yet it has awesome purity and focus, with a distinct minerality keeping it fresh, focused and lively on the palate. Possessing ripe, sweet tannin, an inherent elegance and purity, perfect balance, and an awesome finish, this incredible Saint-Emilion is unquestionably one of the wines of the vintage. Do not miss it."

LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: "Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2015 Beausejour Duffau-Lagarrosse delivers very youthful scents of kirsch, juicy blackberries, and black raspberries, followed by wafts of cedar chest, dried herbs, and wood smoke. The full-bodied palate is still wearing a lot of oak, delivering firm, chewy tannins and plenty of freshness to the long, savory finish."

WINE SPECTATOR: "This has some sizzle, with roasted mesquite and ebullient red licorice notes out front, as well as steak to match, featuring a core sporting ample crushed cherry, red currant and plum fruit flavors. Light tea and chalk threads skitter through the finish, where the fruit echoes nicely. This has grown a bit since the barrel tasting. Best from 2023 through 2040."

FALSTAFF: "Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung, reife Kirschenfrucht, intensive schwarze Waldbeernuancen unterlegt, feine Zwetschgenfrucht. Saftig, elegant, Herzkirschen auch am Gaumen, feine, tragende Tannine, extraktsüßer Abgang, sehr finessenreich strukturiert, mineralisch-salzig im Abgang, sicheres Reifepotenzial, klassischer Stil."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "93–95. Barrel Sample. This wine is firmly structured, with dense tannins and concentrated black-fruit flavors. The acidity provides a lifting edge that enlivens the finish."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The 2015 Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse) is a blend of 90% Merlot picked between 25 September and 5 October, 10% Cabernet Franc picked on 5 and 12 October. It was cropped at 34 hl/ha. It has a very intense, quite opulent bouquet, just like the 2015 Pavie-Macquin from barrel, with fig-tinged red cherry fruit, hints of kirsch and glycerin. The palate likewise shows more refinement and class, the tannins fine and the acidity well judged. It has a fresh finish, though it just needs to muster a touch more tension and sense of energy right on the finish. Let's see what happens during its élevage, because it has the materials to turn into a very fine Saint Emilion."