Red Bordeaux Blend Wine

Expert Ratings

Wine Spectator | Airy cherry and pomegranate notes are lined with hints of tomato leaf and savory. Quick finish. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Drink now. — JMWine Enthusiast  This rich, Merlot-dominated wine is powered by black-currant fruits. Tannins are still there, with a tough edge that suggests heavy extraction during winemaking. The wine needs to soften. Wait to drink until 2021.

James Suckling 91 Points | Sweet berry and floral aromas follow through to a medium body with nicely integrated tannins and a deliciously juicy finish. Drink now. 

Expert Reviews

Georgina Hindle writes:  A nuanced nose, lots going on, sweet spice, perfume and bramble fruits. Chewy, this is round and plump - opulent but then so precise on the palate with real tension. Cooling blue fruits and liquorice, it's the cool freshness that really gives this life. Yes, the tannins are abundant and mouth coating but they're soft and fine and this has great execution. You can feel the intensity but it's carried very well. A blend of 50% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Franc.  Drinking 2023 - 2035  - Decanter 93

Jane Anson writes:  Firm berry fruits, clear austerity on the tannins, set against highly charged smoked oak notes. An enjoyable wine from Lussac, well made and carefully handled.  Drinking 2022 - 2032  - Decanter

99 Points James Suckling | A beautifully layered red with blackcurrant, hazelnut and lead-pencil character and fine, velvety tannins. Full-bodied and reserved. It’s like a tightly knit ball of polished tannins that are cashmere in texture. So very long and impressive. Give this time. A terrific Lynch.

98 Points Wine Enthusiast | Bold black fruits and dense, textured tannins are very much in the style of the estate. What is new in this vintage is the extra precision that lifts the wine, bringing together the beautiful black currant flavors of ripe Cabernet Sauvignon with a refined texture of sophisticated tannins. This is an impressive wine, sure to age over many years.  Barrel Sample: 96-98.

96 Points Wine Spectator | Gorgeous from the start, with cassis and violet notes leading off, followed by additional waves of black cherry and blackberry fruit as well as sweet tobacco and iron. Shows subtle savory and cedar hints that stay in the background, as the iron note pierces through the fruit on the finish. Almost approachable for the fruit, but wait if you can. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2026 through 2040.

Winemaker Description

Puy-Lacoste 2020 is an example once again of a vintage marked by a significant proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend - 76%, which demonstrates the tremendous potential of its terroir and completed by 24% Merlot. It's a very beautiful vintage, more classic in terms of structure than the 2018 and 2019. The bouquet releases aromas of ripe red fruit, violets and spices. This is complemented by an attractive fresh minerality. The attack is precise, clean and long, with its ripe and melted tannins. Overall, this is a wine of great balance, allying charm, elegance and freshness; it is aromatic, with an aftertaste of considerable purity.

Expert Reviews

97 Points James Suckling | This full-bodied red builds on the palate in a fantastic way with tight, compact tannins that grow and grow on the finish. Plenty of blackcurrant and graphite character and a flavorful finish. Same level as the excellent 2016. Barrel Sample: 96-97.

96 Points Wine Spectator | A nice, tightly coiled Pauillac, with a blitz of iron and savory notes wrapped around a core of cassis, damson plum and black cherry. Sleek and tightly focused, with the iron note leaving a mouthwatering echo. Plenty tight through the finish too, so patience is needed here. Best from 2028 through 2042.

95 Points Decanter | Enjoyable, powerful, concentrated, not the most generous of GPLs but they have captured the essence of Pauillac, and it's hard to resist. Sappy juicy finish, full of cassis, mint leaf and pencil lead along the way with a clear tightness to the tannic frame. Barrel Sample: 95.

95 Points Jeb Dunnuck | The 2020 Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste is a more fleshy, textured Pauillac that still plays in the concentrated, focused, structured style of the vintage. Ripe black cherries, currants, toasty oak, chocolate, and tobacco leaf notes give way to a medium to full-bodied, richly textured 2020 that has velvety tannins, good mid-palate depth, and a great finish. Do your best to hide bottles for 4-5 years and enjoy over the following 20-25 years or so. Barrel Sample: 92-95.

94 Points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate | The 2020 Grand-Puy-Lacoste is excellent, offering up aromas of cassis and plums mingled with pencil shavings, violets and loamy soil framed by a touch of creamy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, pure and fleshy, with lively acids, powdery tannins and good depth at the core, its supple, charming style belies considerable aging potential.

Expert Reviews 

Expert Reviews 

Wine Advocate 100 Points | One of the wines of the vintage is the 2020 La Conseillante, a blend of 86% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc that wafts from the glass with inviting aromas of raspberries, red cherries and mulberries mingled with exotic spices, violets and rose petals. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and vibrant, it's a beautifully elegant, sensual wine with a deep core of fruit framed by powdery tannins, concluding with a long, extravagantly floral finish. This is a Pomerol of striking purity and sophistication. Congratulations to Marielle Cazaux and her team for surpassing even what they achieved in 2016 and 2019 with this brilliant 2020!

Winemaker Description

Rich, intense color. An expressive nose, a sophisticated combination of pure black and red fruits. The palate is wonderfully smooth with powerful intensity, maintaining its fineness and elegance. A beautiful acidity, propelling the wine on a long finish. 

Expert Ratings

96 Points Jeb Dunnuck | Beautiful blue fruits, tobacco, damp earth, and floral notes all emerge from the 2019 Château Branaire-Ducru. It's medium to full-bodied, flawlessly balanced, has silky tannins, and shows the quality of the vintage perfectly. A blend of 56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, it will benefit from 4-6 years of bottle age and cruise for two decades or more. It reminds me of the 2009. Barrel Sample | 94-96

96 Points Wine Enthusiast | This is a richly perfumed wine that has bold tannins and dense black fruits. There is a fine line of juicy acidity cutting through all the richness to lend freshness against all the concentration. This is for long-term aging. Barrel Sample | 94-96.

95 Points Robert Parker | The 2019 Branaire-Ducru unwinds in the glass with aromas of raspberries, blackcurrants, sweet soil tones and hints of cigar wrapper, rose petals and cedar. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, it's youthfully tightly wound, with terrific concentration, tangy acids, powdery tannins and a long, saline finish. While this is a little reserved out of the gates, its energy and classical proportions will richly reward bottle age. Best after 2029.

95 Points James Suckling | Very clear fruit character of blackcurrants, orange peel and spices. Some walnut, too. It’s full-bodied with integrated, polished tannins and shows finesse and focus. Love the focused fruit at the end of this. Strength with finesse. Give it four to five years of bottle age. Try after 2024.

94 Points Wine Spectator | Leads with vivid violet and cassis, while dark plum, blackberry and boysenberry reduction notes follow quickly. Racy, structured and well-built, with graphite and apple wood driving through the finish. Very pure and aromatic, featuring a nice sanguine echo that lingers at the very end. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2025.

93 Points Decanter | Floral-studded nose along with cassis fruits, this is an enjoyable Branaire Ducru that is easy to recommend. Lighter-framed than some in the appellation with its characteristic fine tannins making this a medium-term drinker within the St Julien context. Plenty of juice running through the palate, enjoyable baked earth and menthol notes and a kick of salinity on the finish. Barrel Sample | 93.

Expert Reviews

97 Points Wine Enthusiast | In this wine, the tannins are velvety, with black fruits that are immensely concentrated. The texture and powerful tannins provide superb foils for the fruit. Drink from 2027. Organic and biodynamic.

Expert Review

Robert Parker | The aromatics offer plenty of cedar and spice...While the flavors are full bodied and moderately concentrated.

Winemaker Description

Discover the exceptional quality of Château La Lagune Haut-Médoc 1975. This third growth estate, now under the leadership of Caroline Frey, produces concentrated and robust wines. Experience the bold flavors and tannins of this vintage, reminiscent of the highly coveted 1961 vintage. 

Expert Reviews

Wine Spectator 93 Points | Loads of licorice and currants follow through to a full-bodied palate, with lots of refined tannins and a long, long finish. This is very structured and layered. Beauty. Better than the 2000.

Wine Advocate 91 Points | The dense ruby/purple-colored 2003 is surprisingly fresh and crisp, displaying no signs of the vintage’s extreme heat. This full-bodied, powerful, rich, backward, dense, tannic effort reveals notes of Chinese black tea, creme de cassis, licorice, and melted chocolate. Give it 4-5 years of cellaring, and drink it over the next two decades.

James Suckling 93 Points | Slightly cooked fruit on the nose, with a toasted oak and meaty character. Full bodied, with round and chewy tannins and loads of fruit. Big and burly, I like it.