Margaux Cabernet Sauvignon Blend

Elegant and already drinking well with ripe and velvet tannins, plenty of cassis, black cherry, and plum augmented by forest floor, earth, cedar and tobacco leaf. Medium body, medium plus acidity and a long finish. Very impressive.

2004. Cigar box, cassis, dusty earth, dried herbs, orange rind and nice acid. 2-hour decant.

Vintage 2010 | mesmerizing smell: cassis, very wide range of impressions. Still potential and not fully ripe, nice bitter in aftertaste.

Dark purple with near black core. Inviting nose and medium full palate yield black currant, baked plum, and blackberry cobbler. Velvety tannins that only assert back-palate and on the lengthy finish. Add in the juicy, medium acidity and it's -- still -- an excellent companion for red meat centric meals. Filet mignon (or sirloin) with Bordelaise is a natural. Ready to drink now through 2030 if kept properly.

Blend of 68% Cab Sauv and 32% Merlot, aged 60% in new French oak. Deep Ruby with aromas of dark fruits, oak and spice. On the palate flavors of fresh blackberry, plum and currants with licorice and cacao spice, adding cedar and floral notes. Fine soft tannins, long finish ending with layers of fruit, cedar and earthy notes. spice. Opening now but will last another decade+. Nice!

The 2018 Cantenac Brown, which I had recently tasted as part of my horizontal, here replicates that performance. Very pure on the nose, perhaps a little more opulence than the previous bottle, this is beautifully defined with subtle tobacco scents percolating through the black fruit. The palate is medium-bodied, harmonious and extra supple with great tension towards the finish. This is quintessential Margaux and a superb wine from winemaker José Sanfins. Tasted at the Cantenac Brown vertical at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, October 2022)

The 2017 Cantenac Brown is always a strong performer in this vintage. Here, it has quite an opulent nose that you could easily mistake for a 2018 with copious black cherries and violet scents. The palate is fleshy, rounded and fairly sumptuous with pure black fruits that disguise the backbone. There is a welcome marine influence with hints of shucked oyster shells developing on the finish. Give this several years in bottle. Tasted at the Cantenac Brown vertical at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, October 2022)

The 2015 Cantenac Brown displays more red fruit compared directly with the 2016: raspberry and wild strawberry intermingled with sous-bois and tobacco, violet aromas emerging with time. Lovely focus here, though not the panache of the following vintage. The palate is beginning to loosen up with lithe tannins, fleshy and harmonious, tart red cherries, allspice and clove with a grippy and quite persistent finish that lingers in the mouth. This is a wonderful Margaux that should drink a little earlier than the 2016. Tasted at the Cantenac Brown vertical at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, October 2022)

Blend of 67% Cab Sauv and 33% Merlot, bigger Cab% in ‘17. Deep Ruby with aromas of dark fruits, oak and spice. On the palate flavors of fresh blackberry, plum and currants with licorice and cigar box spice adding some cedar and slight floral notes. Fine ripe tannins, long finish ending with layers of fruit, cedar and spice. A joy to drink. Opening now but will last another decade+. Nice!

Elegant, very lean, thin at first but fills out to be expressive. Angular. Still in its prime.