Cellar Selection. This wine is so rich, with generous black plum and berry fruits. It has a structure that is full, ripe and that will sustain the fruitiness of the wine over many years. The sensation is of velvet, with some force behind it. This remarkable wine will develop well, over the medium-term and then age for many years. Drink from 2022.

A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, this biodynamically farmed vineyard (a rarity, but increasing in the Bordeaux viticulture), had tiny yields of 15 hectoliters per hectare. This doesn't translate into super concentration, but this is certainly an outstanding effort in an extremely difficult vintage. The wine has a dense purple color, and classic creme de cassis, licorice and mocha and espresso roast notes that Pontet-Canet has displayed recently. The wine is medium-bodied, possesses excellent purity, equilibrium and sweet, but noticeable tannin. This is by no means at the level of the great vintages that have been so common of late from this incredible property on the Plateau of Pauillac across from Mouton Rothschild, but it's certainly one of the vintage's more noteworthy efforts. Give it 2-3 years of bottle age and drink it over the following 15 or so years.

Very distinctive, with red and black currant fruit jumping out, picking up dried anise, violet and savory notes along the way. Very finely beaded acidity carries the finish, which has sneaky length. Atypical for the overt and highly aromatic profile, this has charming purity but remains noticeably shy on depth. Drink now through 2020.