Château Giscours 2019

Really solid for the vintage, with a fresh edge to the mix of black currant, blackberry and fig paste flavors. This wine's energy extends through the finish, where humus, singed cedar, savory and iron-tinged minerality add range and cut. Still shows the vintage's excessive heat, but this manages it better than most of its peers. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2023 through 2035. 23,000 cases made, 5,000 cases imported.

Gorgeous floral aromatics, so perfumed and pretty, really leaping out of the glass with an amazingly vibrant pink/purple colour too. Such an excellent delivery of flavour on the palate, with shiny, bright fruit and well-expressed terroir supported by smooth, supple tannins. It shows the heat of the vintage in the density and deep core of spice-edged red and black fruit, yet it also has juicy, bright acidity that underpins the fruit and keeps everything refreshing. Full of elegance, precision and confidence — all the elements in harmony with consistency and persistence. A wonderful wine. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot.

A ripe and layered red with lots of currant and chocolate character, as well as some walnut and cocoa powder. Crushed stones, too. It’s full and layered with round tannins and a juicy and plush texture. Crushed velvet that turns to silk. Very cool and long. Plenty going on here. Give it three to four years to come together. But will age beautifully for years to come. A blend of 65% cabernet sauvignon and 35% merlot. Try after 2026.

The 2019 Giscours is every bit as compelling today as it was from barrel. Dark and sumptuous in feel, Giscours shows off its notable dimension and breadth. Succulent black cherry, plum, leather, tobacco, menthol and licorice intensify as this gorgeous, beautifully layered Margaux builds with time in the glass. The 2019 is a big wine, but not quite as exuberant as the 2018. Tasted two times

Freshness and purity are the hallmark of this wine. The intensity of the perfume, with all its violets, lilacs, and roses, along with tobacco leaf, black and red fruits, wet earth, spice, and smoke, is attention-grabbing. But I love the silky palate textures with all of its depth and richness, purity of fruit, vibrancy, and length. This is the best vintage produced in the long history of Chateau Giscours. It will age effortlessly for 2–3 decades. Drink from 2026–2055.

Dark ruby, opaque core, purple reflections, subtle brightening on the rim. Ripe plum fruit, dark berries, a hint of liquorice and dried fruit, starts slowly, needs plenty of air to open up. Good complexity, ripe plums, red cherries, integrated tannins, subtle nougat, good freshness, only medium length at the moment, will benefit from further bottle ageing.

Kunz barrel sample 2020: (65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 13.5% alc./vol.) Dense, refined, mineral bouquet with strawberry jelly, flint, balsa wood, subtle truffle, currants, mint, and delicate praline notes. Tightly knit, elegant, fresh palate with a wide range of sweet aromatics, plenty of fine tannins, a creamy, dense structure, powerful, refined fruit, and a very long, full finish with lingering after-aromas.

Silky, dense, elegant, mineral, complex bouquet of strawberry, mulberry, blueberry, flint, vanilla bean, currants, cedar. Densely woven, elegant, fresh palate with powerful, fine, sweet fruit, creamy, delicately muscular structure, plenty of fine tannins, concentrated, multifaceted aromatics, very long, powerful, full finish. 19/20 2026 - 2055

Another reminder of just how balanced and delicious the 2019 vintage is in Bordeaux. It hits the graphite, slate and raspberry leaf notes that take you firmly into Cabernet Sauvignon territory, with dark yet bright cassis and blackberry fruit, and a savoury finish of sage and spiced clove. Lorenzo Pasquini, technical director, first vintage with Thomas Duclos as consultant, harvest from September 11 to October 12, yield of 44 hl/ha, 50% new oak for ageing.

The 2019 Giscours is deep garnet-purple in color. It is slightly subdued to start, opening out to notes of fresh blackcurrants, warm plums, and bay leaves, with touches of graphite and damp soil. The medium-bodied palate is refreshing and chewy, with just enough fruit and a slightly drying finish.

The wine has tightened up, driven by Cabernets that are just a touch strict mid-palate. At this stage, it is less spectacular and flamboyant than it was en primeur, though it certainly hasn’t lost its class. One to watch, as its potential is there.

Giscours 2019 reveals itself in stages, little by little. Initially somewhat closed and reduced, it is defined by its freshness, with notes of elderberry and garrigue. A wine whose tannins provide brilliant support, with elegance and precision, with serenity even! A Giscours that deserves a bit of time but certainly confirms the ambitions it showed during the en primeur tastings!

Dark, intense, purple color. Very aromatic nose—refined, fruity, pure, and subtle. Delicate on the attack, silky at mid-palate, the wine turns a touch harsh on the finish, which is a pity. Normal, sappy length.

Within the great 2018–2019–2020 trilogy, the central year seems (today) the most in tune with the Giscours style and the Margaux identity. Beautiful fruit brightness, dynamic drive both in the aromatics and in the texture. The palate is suave, lightly veiled by a finely crinkled tannic weave, with grain, elegance, and firm flesh. It is rigorous, filigreed. The 2020, more intense and vibrant, will also have its say.