Château Brane-Cantenac 2021

Some may see 2021 as a modest vintage, yet there are great wines this year. Brane is one of them: the nose shows depth, it’s clear and pure, with cassis, grasses, and floral notes. On the palate, it’s delicate, with crisp fruit, plenty of freshness and elegance, precise tannins, and top-notch oak management. A dancing Brane, enjoyable early, with aging potential.

The 2021 Brane-Cantenac offers aromas of sweet dark berries mingled with mint, vanilla pod and spices. It shows its élevage and malolactic fermentation in new oak more prominently than it did en primeur. Medium to full-bodied, with good depth and concentration, it’s bright and velvety, with plenty of structuring barrel tannin and a vanillin-inflected finish. The quality of Brane’s terroirs and a strict selection show through, so if it can digest its oak more completely, this will prove exceptional.

Wild pink flowers on the nose, with blackcurrant and cherry fruit, fragrant, almost sweet and sour, super inviting. Cool but concentrated fruit on the palate, supple, agile, ripe, full and direct. It has a gorgeous weight on the palate, not plush — it’s in keeping with the vintage for sure, but with such a finessed, elegant frame. Lovely licks of minerality that don’t overwhelm the wine and the flavours carry to a long finish. A great sense of fun, joy and delicate beauty. Pretty and super charming, a delicate take from Brane but with so much to like in its subtle charm.

With a bit of oak that still needs to integrate on the nose, the perfume quickly moves to roses, tobacco leaf, cherries, black currants, incense, and a background note of orange rind. On the palate, it is soft, fresh, elegant, and refined, with layers of sweet, ripe red fruits that taste as good as they feel. This is an incredible success for the vintage. The wine blends 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot, and 1% Carmenere. Drink from 2026–2050.

Dark ruby, purple reflections, subtle brightening on the rim. On the nose, delicate notes of tobacco, dark berries, blackberry, hints of liquorice and figs. Medium-bodied with a fresh structure, integrated tannins, red berries and a lemony-salty finish. A lively style with good length and definite ageing potential.

I loved the nose on the 2021 Château Brane-Cantenac, which has good intensity as well as the vintage’s fresher, vibrant, focused style. Ripe red and blue fruits, violets, tobacco, and a beautiful sense of graphite and minerality all define the aromatics, and it hits the palate with medium-bodied richness, a supple, elegant, layered mouthfeel, beautiful tannins, and nicely integrated acidity. The overall balance here is spot on, and while this is approachable and delicious even today, it should shine for two decades. The blend is 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc, Carmenère, and Petit Verdot, with the élevage spanning 18 months in new barrels.

Brane-Cantenac 2021 is extremely dark and viscous in appearance. On the thrilling nose, it reveals itself as a super-delicate, forward Margaux with intensely present, dense fruit—liqueur-ripe and intense—a great Bordeaux with remarkable freshness and presence. Super elegant and harmonious on the palate, slender yet intense, with superb breed and multilayered depth. Very long and taut, with crisp freshness that will surely allow it to age timelessly. Not a small wine, but a great Brane with impressive presence and astonishing balance. Dark-berried, liqueur-like, ripe and fresh on the endless finish. 13.0% ABV.

Kunz barrel sample 2022: (organic, 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 1% Carmenère, 1% Petit Verdot, 12.7% alc./vol.) Silky, fresh, floral bouquet, raspberries, cherries, mint, fine herbs. Elegant, finely creamy palate with sweet fruit, fine tannins, refined structure, powerful aromatics, long, vigorous finish. Has room to improve further.

(Organic, 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 1% Carmenère, 1% Petit Verdot, 12.7% alc./vol.) Silky, fresh, floral bouquet with raspberry, cherry, mint, fine herbs. Elegant, delicately creamy palate with sweet fruit, fine tannins, refined structure, powerful aromatics, long, vigorous finish. Still has room to improve. 17/20 2028 - 2048

One of the few with violet reflections on a ruby core, showing austerity and a cool-vintage expression of blueberry and raspberry fruit, well defined and sculpted, with good juiciness and lift, impressive purity and power, and a sandalwood swirl from 100% new oak for ageing. Harvested from September 23 to October 7, yield 41 hl/ha.

The 2021 Brane-Cantenac is deep garnet-purple in color. After a swirl or two, notes of black raspberries, juicy blackberries, and cassis come barreling out of the glass, plus nuances of dried herbs and graphite. The light to medium-bodied palate offers great tension and intensity, with fine-grained tannins and a long, savory finish.

This is yet another of the appellation’s successes, with a spectacular wine. It shows very restrained power and great balance. The palate is fleshy, full, and fruity, with very fine, supple tannins that come together harmoniously.

An opulent, heady bouquet of late-summer flowers, fully in bloom, with heavy, intensely fragrant petals. This perfumed character carries through to an exquisite palate of true nobility. The mid-palate lacks a little body, but the lovely, well-balanced finish more than makes up for it.

The nose is aromatic and elegant, offering lovely precision/definition, fine yet refined intensity, a graceful, airy quality with delicate power, and harmony. It reveals notes of fresh/plump blackberry, vibrant blackcurrant and, more delicately, raspberry, joined by fine hints of ripe cherry, discreet/delicate touches of violet, an imperceptible roasted nuance of fruit (in the background), subtle hints of nutmeg, a subtle touch of fresh/Sichuan pepper, and a delicate hint of vanilla. The palate is beautifully fresh, mineral and balanced, with a juicy/tangy backbone, lovely sapidity, energy, discreet crunch, a fine infusion-like character, very fine grain and beautiful harmony. On the palate, this wine shows notes of juicy/plump raspberry, fresh cherry and, more subtly, fresh lily, combined with delicate touches of racy minerality, a subtle hint of graphite, chocolate (in the background and enveloping), salinity, a subtle hint of fresh/vibrant red berries, and an imperceptible touch of fresh blue plum (in the background). The tannins are sapid, elegant and racy. Good length.

Very beautiful deep dark red, purple, with black highlights. Superb, highly aromatic nose—refined, pure, fruity, floral, and complex. Delicate on entry and consistently supported by a meticulous texture, juicy at mid-palate, then melting and ultimately rich, the wine advances regally, Margaux-like and ultra-perfumed, toward a long, refined finish with no angular tannins. It’s very hard to spit out. Blend: 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot, 1% Carménère. Alcohol: 12.7% (light chaptalization) – pH: 3.66 – IPT: 72 (above average). 22% saignée for the Merlots. Yield: 41 hl/ha. Harvest dates: September 23 to October 7. For the record, this cru made a leap forward starting in 2019. In 2021, it maintains its high level of quality!

Brane-Cantenac 2021 handles this vintage beautifully without compromising its style. The oak, more filigreed than usual, leaves room for refreshing notes of eucalyptus and garrigue, while blackberry and elderberry aromas emerge. Gourmand and slender, the wine is carried by compact, velvety tannins, while the acidic backbone gives it character. A sapid Brane-Cantenac that can already be approached in its youth, yet given its framework, it has what it takes to stand the test of time. Worth revisiting regularly 😉