Le Petit Ducru de Ducru-Beaucaillou 2022

Cool and slightly creamy in texture, a touch thick with rich, concentrated black and blue fruit that carry both a fleshy, chewy plushness and a cooling menthol note that makes for an enticing whole. It stops short of being fully charged, with a firm core of graphite, liquorice, aniseed and clove spice — the oak still covering the fruit at this stage but providing the muscle and frame. Lots of minerality on the finish.

Aromas of blueberries, blackcurrants, raspberries and hints of minerals. Medium-bodied with fine tannins and a direct, focused finish. The fruit is in harmony with the tannins. 75% merlot, 20% cabernet sauvignon and 5% petit verdot. Drink after 2027, but already approachable.

The 2022 Le Petit Ducru de Ducru-Beaucaillou has an open bouquet with touches of chalk infusing the black fruit. Aeration uncovers more red fruit tones with hints of graphite. The palate is medium-bodied with quite strict tannins, a clear level up from the “Madame” cuvée. It has more precision and tension emanating from the finish. This is very fine.

Espresso, flowers, cocoa, licorice, and black cherries create the nose. Medium-bodied, elegant, fresh, pure, and vibrant, there is a touch of chalk and chocolate mint at the back of the finish. The wine blends 75% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot. Drink from 2025-2038.

Deep ruby, purple reflections, subtle brightening on the rim. Inviting black forest berries, fresh black cherries, some nougat, herbal savouriness with tobacco in the background. Good complexity, fine cherry fruit, mineral texture, integrated tannins, taut on the finish, salty and well lasting. A food wine with certain ageing potential.

Ripe black cherries, spicy wood, flowers, and graphite notes all emerge from the 2022 Le Petit Ducru De Ducru-Beaucaillou, a medium-bodied, silky, elegant, and remarkably pure 2022 that has no hard edges, fine tannins, and a great finish. It brings a touch more finesse and elegance compared to the Madame de Beaucaillou and has a real Saint-Julien character.

Playful bouquet with violet and iris aromas, fresh blackcurrant nectar and tobacco leaf. Juicy on the palate with a finely firm texture, sandy extract, a supportive tannic frame and medium body. Straightforward finish with sour cherry juice, dried thyme and a floury astringency.

Creamy generosity to the blackberry and cassis fruits, showing intensity and depth, knitted down right now, and with clear ageing potential and heavy black pepper spice. Tasted twice, this is an En Primeur wine to its boots, feels young and full of promise. 25ha on western side of St Julien (formerly Lalande Borie until 2018, plus sourcing from across the appellation), 3.77 pH, IPT 86, 43% new oak for ageing.

A juicy, vibrant blue-fruit nose, like a young adventurer ready to discover the world. Notes of ash and lily pollen add depth and gravity. The palate is sumptuously creamy, refined and broad, driven by lovely energy and a biting freshness.

Elegant and nicely intense, the bouquet of Petit Ducru reveals nuances of licorice, eucalyptus and black berries, with freshness as the guiding thread. With good density, the wine is carried by compact, fine-grained tannins that provide backbone and impart a subtle austerity. This brings a touch of character and freshness, which bodes well in a powerful context. A structured wine that will benefit from a little patience.

The nose is peppery, precise and airy, with a certain power. It reveals notes of pulpy cherry and pulpy/fresh blackberry, combined with hints of bright small berries, as well as fine touches of violet, vanilla, and discreet almost–black-cherry nuances. The palate is nicely crafted, supple, fresh, mineral and balanced, with a tangy backbone. It shows notes of juicy/pulpy blackberry and raspberry, and, more lightly, bright redcurrant, combined with hints of rose and iris, with an almost discreet cold-infusion character, even very subtle rooty nuances. Good length. Fine cocoa/chocolate hints. A charmingly fresh, silky wine with a delicate touch of roundness. A lovely slight sweetness and real indulgence. Chocolatey persistence.