Château Grand-Puy Ducasse 2019

Interesting; fruity-floral aromatics; particularly juicy and racy in style, spirited, even powerful, with tension and character.

Well-packed, showing black currant and blackberry fruit flavors, which are marked by bramble and savory accents and carried by fresh acidity through a finish that's scored by humus, tobacco and iron. A textbook, austere, driven and age-worthy Pauillac. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2024 through 2036. 8,000 cases made, 500 cases imported.

At the moment the 2019 is a little closed on the nose but, with swirling, soon reveals a very attractive blackberry and currant character. Typical 2019 weight and richness, cut with good acidity and supported by fine, ripe tannins. Just a little drying on the finish but a refined 2019. Violets on the nose and palate. Spice notes as well. Should develop very nicely.

Blackcurrants and walnuts with sweet berry and cherry undertones. Full-bodied with chewy tannins and a long, flavorful finish. Linear and intense tannins run the length of the wine with intensity and persistence. Try after 2026.

53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Merlot. Barrel sample. Best of recent vintages? Certainly has more structure and power with additional mid-palate flesh. Firm and reserved on the nose with a dark-fruit nuance. A touch of sweetness on attack, then the broader sweep provided by Merlot. Plenty of grainy tannins behind. Firm, dry finish. GV? (JL)

Flowers, red currants and cedar create the nose, while layers of soft, fresh, ripe, dusty red and black currants with touches of olives and savory herbs hit your palate. The tannins are ripe. There is good freshness, weight and the fruits express purity. The wine ends with a refined, polished, mildly dusty finish. Drink from 2025-2040.

Dark ruby red, purple hues, a subtle brightening on the rim. Nougat and dark forest berries, a touch of vanilla, ripe red cherries, hints of oak. Powerful, very taut, with somewhat over-extracted tannins that appear brittle, a bit astringent and green on the finish, some bitter notes in the aftertaste.

A beautiful effort that does everything right, the 2019 Château Grand-Puy Ducasse offers a rich, medium to full-bodied, concentrated style that shows the inherent elegance, as well as richness, of the vintage. Darker currants, toasted spice, cedar pencil, and tobacco notes all define the bouquet, and it's quintessentially Pauillac with its aromatics as well as structure. It already offers pleasure, particularly with a decant (I followed this bottle for multiple days), but it will certainly benefit from 5-7 years in the cellar and is going to shine for at least two decades.

Kunz barrel sample 2020: (53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Merlot) Sweet, velvety, creamy bouquet, prunes, chocolate, blackberries, cold smoke. Balanced, powerful palate with dark fruit, fine sandy tannins, solid bourgeois structure, intense aromatics, long, bitter finish. Has room to improve.

Velvety, dark bouquet, blackberry jelly, cassis, licorice, mocha, cedar. Balanced, powerful palate with dark fruit, fine tannins, velvety structure, intense dark aromatics, long, subtly bitter finish. 17/20 2026 - 2045

Powerful liquorice, cocoa bean, espresso and campfire smoke on the opening beats of the wine, silky tannins, well-handled blackberry and cassis fruits. Bitter aniseed on the finish; this has great momentum and lift, and is a successful Grand Puy Ducasse, a big step up from the second wine. 40% new oak.

Rich, sweet red and purple fruit on the nose mingle with a fresh, caressing floral scent and gentle spices of cinnamon and paprika. A light, harmonious density, with tannins present enough to shape the wine’s structure on the palate.

Vintage after vintage, Grand-Puy Ducasse gains in precision and in its ability to reveal detail. We are clearly in a fine-tuning phase now; the bulk of the work is done, and it’s the details that present the remaining challenges; the path is set. The bouquet of the 2019 stands out for its finesse and complexity. It reveals multiple nuances of graphite, tea leaves, and licorice. These are followed by a hint of eucalyptus, quickly carried forward by cassis notes. The wine is dense, with finely grained tannins. This is precisely where there has been a major leap forward since 2016, namely in the finesse of the tannins. The wine combines freshness, power, and elegance. The notion of a great wine is taking shape and being confirmed.

Dark, intense, and beautiful color. Very aromatic nose, with ripe fruit and more subtle than ever. Caressing on the attack, supple mid-palate, very aromatic, the wine develops into juicy power before finishing on a slightly tight but very tasty texture. It’s good! A fine success for the vintage. Alcohol content: 14.5%.

94–96. Barrel Sample. From one of the lesser-known Pauillac crus classés, this wine shows plenty of fine structure as well as ripe black currant fruits from the Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend. It is also the succulent fruitiness that shines, lending to a good future.