Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou 2016

JEB DUNNUCK: "Reminding me of the 2010 with its incredible stature and class (as opposed to the more opulently styled 2009), the 2016 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is a legendary wine from the genius of Bruno Borie, who has managed this estate brilliantly since he arrived in 2003. A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot brought up all in new oak, the 2016 has a mammoth bouquet of crème de cassis, espresso, camphor, crushed violets, toasty oak, and graphite. Full-bodied, concentrated, and backward on the palate, it nevertheless has perfectly integrated acidity and building tannins, a concentrated, layered texture, off-the-charts purity of fruit, and a finish that won't quit. Give this powerful, concentrated wine a solid 7-8 years of bottle age and enjoy it over the following 50 years or more."

JAMES SUCKLING: "Super perfumed, attractive violets with a thread of fresh blueberries, cassis, blackberries and dark plums, delivering a very enticing impression. Beautiful ripeness here. The tannins are perfectly ripe and layers meld into each other, carrying deep, graceful and plush, velvety dark fruit long into the vibrant and seductive, chocolate-laced finish. Great potential. Try from 2024."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Voluptuous, silky, dense and rich, the wine hits your palate and stays there with layers of lusciously textured, perfectly ripe cassis and blackberries. Full-bodied, concentrated and balanced between power and elegance, this is a stunning example of Ducru Beaucaillou. It is hard to decide if I prefer the sensuality on the palate, the length or purity. So I did what needed to be done, I took another sip. And with this in your glass, you will do the same. The wine is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Very deep purple-black in color, the 2016 Ducru-Beaucaillou delivers a pronounced, enticing nose of baked plums, blueberry preserves, fruitcake and boysenberry with suggestions of lilacs, mocha, hoisin and exotic spices plus a waft of cedar chest. Full-bodied, rich and opulent in the mouth, the palate has layer upon layer of black fruit preserves and spicy nuances, matched by a very firm, grainy frame, finishing with epic length and depth."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "This wine conveys density but its richness is sublimated by the complex structure and beautiful ripe fruit. Its power comes from the structure as much as the fruit, promising a wine with an immensely long life ahead of it. Drink from 2025."

FALSTAFF: "Leuchtendes Rubingranat, opak, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Reife Kirschenfrucht, feine dunkle Beerennoten unterlegt, feine Edelholzwürze, zart nach Orangenzesten, süße Gewürze im Hintergrund. Komplex, feine Schokonote, reife Pflaumenfrucht, perfekt reife Tannine, finessenreich strukturiert, angenehme Extraktsüße im Abgang, mineralisch und anhaltend, minutenlanger Abgang."

WINE SPECTATOR: "Offers exotic, cashmere-textured, mocha-infused blackberry, cassis and plum puree flavors, with smoldering incense and warm fruitcake notes and a swath of plush yet serious grip too boot, showing ample depth and breath. As distinctive a Bordeaux as there is these days. Best from 2025 through 2040. 7,500 cases made."

DECANTER: "Rich and silky in texture, there's some lovely cinnamon and black pepper spice here, with lovely grip from the very fine tannins and good drive too. It's extremely precise, with every piece in its place, a considered and drawn out style featuring notes of menthol and bitter dark chocolate. It's really bedding in for the long haul. It shows that even the second wines can be powerful and concentrated in 2016."