2021, Château Cantenac Brown, MARGAUX, 3ème Grand Cru Classé

Bordeaux Blend: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc.

The 2021 Cantenac Brown is superb. Rich and flashy, with tons of persistence, the 2021 is a wine of notable depth. Black cherry, plum, spice, new leather and mocha are all amplified. Readers will find a Cantenac Brown endowed with notable textural richness. Estate Manager Jose Sanfins opted to bleed the musts, and that resulted in an unusually opulent wine for the year - very much in line with the house style. The 2021 is drop-dead gorgeous. 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous (2023).

The 2021 Cantenac Brown has commendable fruit intensity on the nose considering the growing season: blackberry and wild strawberry fruit, crushed stone, touches of cedar and tobacco. The palate is well-balanced with a crisp bead of acidity, sapid in the mouth and harmonious, with a conspicuous marine influence toward the finish that holds your interest. This is a very well-crafted Margaux that should give 20 years of drinking pleasure. 92 Neal Martin, Vinous (2023).

The 2021 Cantenac Brown has turned out very nicely in bottle, wafting from the glass with notes of dark berries and cherries mingled with hints of menthol, liquorice and violets. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and seamless, with a layered core of fruit, sweet tannins and nicely integrated acids, it concludes with a delicately vanillin-inflected finish. This strong performance in a challenging season underlines this property's upward trajectory. 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate (2024).

Gorgeous fragrance and florality on the nose with ripe and perfumed black fruit and some peony touches. Smooth and supple, nicely weighted with lovely finesse and concentration to the fruit - blackcurrant, cherry and raspberry - with really juicy acidity. A lovely almost creamy aspect to the texture with just grippy and spiced tannins towards the finish. Nice aspect of oak throughout showing the ageing potential. I like this a lot, well formed, well delivered. Easy to enjoy with tons of personality. 94 Georgina Hindle, Decanter (2023).

Drinking Window: 2026 - 2045