Château Batailley 2015

Stunningly fruity, elegant, silky, yet also powerful and deep. A magnificent wine that will bring long-lasting enjoyment.

A showy mint note leads off, followed by a flash of ganache before giving way to a core of steeped black currant and fig fruit. A strong charcoal edge through the finish gives this texture and length, while a bay leaf note adds freshness. There's lots to like in this old-school version. Best from 2022 through 2033. 18,333 cases made.

On first nose this hits you with cedary oak. It achieves balance after a few minutes in the glass, as you start to enjoy the rich black fruits and coffee bean aspect to the palate, but the winery seems to be overpowering the vineyard here. This is a modern style 2015 that can be enjoyed earlier than many other Pauillacs in this vintage, and it is often good value too. The first vintage with a second wine, Les Lions de Batailley, which perhaps explains why this feels just a little more supercharged than in previous years.

Impressive depth to the wine from the outset, with a gently smoky edge to ripe blackberries, blueberries and red plums. Some attractive spicy oak here, too. The mid-weight palate is very composed and linear, with a long, succulent and regal finish. Great polish and balance here; the structure is superb. Try from 2022.

Tasted blind. Shaded garnet. Sweet, oaky with a hint of cocoa. Not the finest Pauillac but drinkable even now. Blurred edges somehow. (JR)

The 2015 Batailley has a slightly gamey bouquet that opens nicely in the glass, with red berry fruits, brown spices, and light minty aromas that draw you in. The palate is medium-bodied with plush tannins, but there is real structure behind it, insistent grip, and an off-dry, dark-chocolate-tinged finish. Give this another couple of years. Tasted blind at the 2015 Bordeaux Ten-Year-On tasting at Farr Vintners.

Tasty Pauillac style, with soft tannins, concentration, dark red fruits, and a burst of juicy, ripe cassis, tobacco, and very dark chocolate on the palate. This wine has freshness, with traditional Pauillac character. Give it 6–8 years in the cellar before popping a cork.

Deep ruby with purple reflections and delicate rim brightening. Intense roasted aromas, some caramel nougat, ripe black cherry underneath, a hint of bergamot. Juicy, dark chocolate notes, round tannins, some honey on the finish, already accessible, could be drunk already, but has certain ageing potential.

Dense dark ruby colour with a purple hue. Nice intensity on the nose, roasted coffee, fine wood, graphite, cassis and layers of dark fruit. Dense palate, rather full and ample with high tannin, yet rounded without hard edges, fine integration of wood, juicy dark fruit, tobacco notes and a long elegant finish. Still a youthful wine meriting ageing but good potential.

Located in Pauillac, Château Batailley has made a beautiful 2015, but it’s going to need time to integrate its oak. Made from primarily Cabernet Sauvignon mixed with 20% Merlot and just a splash of Petit Verdot, it gives up lots of red currants, coffee, and cedary, woody spice characteristics as well as a meaty undercurrent. Medium to full-bodied, ripe and polished on the palate, with ripe, yet present tannin, give bottle 4-5 years and enjoy over the following two decades or more. Tasted once.

Deep purple, concentrated in the center, with garnet glints at the rim. Open, sweet bouquet showing plenty of ripe plum, underpinned by a generous milk-chocolate note. On the palate, already incredibly silky and juicy, with lots of glycerol-like charm. Not an especially powerful Batailley and, in a way, a somewhat lighter iteration. The key point, however, is its drinkability, which it will deliver very soon. Can still gain further complexity.

(77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot, 48 hl/ha) Creamy, sweet, powerful bouquet: plum, subtle dried-fruit notes, cedar, dark chocolate, black pepper. Balanced, supple, fruity palate with sweet fruit, fine tannins, a delicately opulent structure, powerful, sweet aromatics, and a long, full finish. 18/20 2023 - 2045

The 2015 Batailley is medium to deep garnet colored. It is still showing a fair bit of new oak, leading to a core of crème de cassis, plum preserves, and sautéed herbs with a touch of unsmoked cigars. The medium-bodied palate dips just slightly in the middle, with chewy tannins and refreshing acidity, finishing with an herbal lift.

A precise, very well-balanced whole, with a silky-grained texture—complete and harmonious—with moderate intensity yet sovereign depth.

An archetype of a fine, classic Pauillac built for aging, it is upright, with a subtle smoky note and fresh fruit on the nose. Complete and elegant.

Dark, intense and beautiful colour. Moderately aromatic nose, with ripe, pure fruit and a finely creamy texture. Precise from the first sip, supple at the core, gaining in power, the wine develops with noble complexity and plenty of flavour, leading to a very long finish. Delicious! Blend: 77% cabernet sauvignon, 20% merlot, 3% petit verdot.

Garnet red with purple highlights. A very distinctive, classic, expressive bouquet with notes of cedar and graphite. On the palate, the wine stands out for its elegance and creamy texture. It mirrors the aromatic profile on the nose but reveals its aromatic intensity even better on the palate. The tannins have a gripping grain that harmonizes with the structure. The latter brings freshness, leaving the wine well balanced. Bravo.

Ripe and spicy, this wine comes from an estate on the western edge of Pauillac. Young fruit, toast and fine tannins are combining well into a rich wine that is likely to develop relatively quickly, very much in the style of this property. Drink from 2024.