2017, Chateau Malartic-Lagravières, PESSAC-LÉOGNAN

Bordeaux Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot.

The 2017 Malartic Lagravière is a rich, sumptuous wine endowed with tremendous richness. Raspberry jam, mocha, new oak, liquorice, mint, chocolate and sweet spice are all kicked up a few notches in this flamboyant, exotic Pessac-Léognan. This is an especially dense, heady style. I would give the 2017 a few years in bottle to see if the new oak integrates a bit more fully. Tasted three times. 91 Antonio Galloni, Vinous (2019).

The 2017 Malartic-Lagravière is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. This has come on nicely since tasting it from barrel. The bouquet is almost understated at first, relying on its purity and delineation to seduce. Scents of blackberry and briary gently unfold with time. The palate is medium-bodied with very supple tannins, a lithe Pessac-Léognan with soft blackberry, red plum and redcurrant fruit laced with clove and white pepper towards the finish. Not a wine of astonishing complexity, but elegant and satisfying persistence. Enjoy this over the next 15 years, possibly longer. 92 Neal Martin, Vinous (2019).

Sixty percent of the crop made it into this grand vin this year. The blend is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, and it was aged in 45% new French oak. Deep garnet-purple in colour, the 2017 Malartic Lagraviere features baked blackberries, mulberries, pencil lead and spice cake with hints of chocolate box, menthol and cassis. The medium-bodied palate is plush, soft, juicy and expressive with a spicy finish. 91+ Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Advocate (2020).

Deep in colour, with a rich sweet character to the fruit - it's clear how carefully they have worked to maintain mid-palate roundness in a vintage where half of the fruit was lost to frost (affecting mainly the 2nd wine, with a 22hl/ha yield overall). It's enjoyable and opens up in the glass. Not as concentrated as the 2018 or 2016 vintages at Malartic, but an awful lot going for it, with precision and poise, and it has settled in to itself over ageing. 93 Jane Anson, Decanter (2019).

Drinking Window: 2022 - 2032