Château Cantemerle 2016

Starts with a violet note but turns darker quickly, with dark currant and black cherry preserve flavors forming the core. Nice fresh tobacco and iron details carry the mouthwatering finish. Not big, but focused and tasty. Drink now through 2030. 33,333 cases made.

This beautiful château is one of the first major properties encountered heading north on the Route des Châteaux. Situated in a woodland setting, this 94-hectare estate lies on sand and gravel soils, and produces fresh, early-drinking, great-value wines. Medium-bodied, with some graphite and mineral notes adding to the ripe blackberry fruit. Aged 12 months in oak, 40% new.

Plenty of menthol, blackberry and blackcurrant aromas in this elegant, medium-weight Haut-Médoc that’s got as much freshness as ripeness and a long, clean, mineral and herbal finish. An incredibly food-flexible wine! Drink or hold.

Tasted blind. Serious, intense nose. Bone-dry finish. Not a charmer but it ticks the boxes. Very dry end. (JR)

The 2016 Cantemerle has a ripe, juicy bouquet with blackberry, black olive and blueberry fruit, quite floral in style. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins, quite high-toned in terms of acidity, sapid, with a welcome briny finish. More-ish and great value. Yes please! Tasted blind at the Southwold 10-Year-On tasting.

Bright, crisp, fresh, medium to full-bodied, juicy, pure, and clean, the fruit offers the right balance between lift and sweetness. Give this 6–9 years and it is going to be great!

Deep dark ruby, opaque core, discreet rim brightening, somewhat restrained, dark berry fruit, ripe plums, blackberries, DELICATE licorice. Good complexity, juicy, black fruit, integrated tannins, DELICATE nougat, tight and persistent, good length, shows development and certain ageing potential.

Floral and perfumed nose with ripe dark fruit, classic notes of cassis, plum, black cherry with fine oak and leather. The palate is dense with good volume and a polished texture, ripe tannin, very fluid and already digestible, with layers of ripe dark fruit, fine tobacco and a long, sustained finish.

The 2016 Château Cantemerle is a solid effort, yielding ample mulberry and black cherry fruit intermixed with notions of tobacco, cedarwood, and spring flowers. It’s not a blockbuster but has a perfumed, complex, medium-bodied style that’s a joy to drink. Enjoy it over the coming 10-15 years.

Deep garnet with lightening rim. Seductive raspberry nose, backed by delicate, leafy notes and light tobacco. Very elegant palate with finely sandy extract, finishing aromatically on raspberry seeds. Can improve. 17+/20

Kunz barrel sample 17: light, red-berry, sweet bouquet, grenadine, cherries. Slender, firm palate with sandy tannins, light fruit, sweet aromatics, dry finish.

Light, red-berried, sweet bouquet, grenadine, cherries. Slim, firm palate with sandy tannins, light fruit, sweet aromatics, dry finish. 16/20 2023 - 2032

Fragrant concentration of earth, violets and iris flowers immediately apparent, continuing on the palate with black tea, cedar, liquorice root, blackberry, slate, campfire. 50 hl/ha yield. You could open now with a long decant, but it will continue to age for at least another decade. Great stuff. 40% new oak for ageing, Eric Boissenot consultant, Philippe Dambrine estate director.

Deep garnet in color, the 2016 Cantemerle leaps with pretty, floral notes of rose oil and lavender, followed by a core of raspberry preserves and kirsch, plus a hint of underbrush. The light to medium-bodied palate is lively and vibrant, featuring chewy tannins and a lifted, savory finish.

A lot of freshness and finesse, almost floral—which is rare in 2016—long, subtle, very much in the style of southern Médoc.

Nose of small black fruits, Zan, floral, vanilla, with slightly pronounced oak. Fresh, fruity, long palate, lovely acidity, indulgent.

The color of Cantemerle 2016 sets the tone right away: it is purple, dense, with violet highlights. The nose is complex and intense, marked by fruity and spicy notes and licorice wood. On the palate, the wine is full, deep, and perfectly balanced. It has powerful, dense tannins with fine grain. The acidic structure is very much present and fully plays its supporting and refreshing role. As the minutes pass, the aromatic character gains in intensity, right through to the finish. What a success. As far as I can remember, this is the best Cantemerle I have ever had the chance to taste. Sincere congratulations to the whole team! You truly deserve it!

Well-integrated tannins give this wine a rich, velvet character that is underlined by the blackberry fruits. The aftertaste is dense, concentrated and rich. Drink from 2025.