Critic Ratings & Tasting Notes
Decanter (97/100)
“Richly scented and vibrant nose of dark fruits, liquorice and cocoa. Supple and invigorating, fresh acidity lifting the expression, nuanced and detailed. Softly grained tannins have a chalky aspect giving structure and a filling texture, lots of graphite and wet stones with black berry notes and such energy throughout. Juicy and alive, this is classic in the best sense, and has immediate charm but with the potential to age. I also love the fresh, zesty orange aspects and cool lift throughout.”
James Suckling (96-97/100)
“Firm, structured and pure with a cool and solid core of dark currants, blackberries, tar, pencil lead and bitter chocolate. Hints of tobacco, too. Firm but silky tannins. Very pure, with a long, mineral finish. Intense and very focused. 98% cabernet sauvignon and 2% merlot.”
Jeff Leve – The Wine Cellar Insider (97/100)
“Cigar box, tobacco leaf, wet earth, blackberry, flowers, and black currants fill the nose. On the palate, the wine is fresh, polished, soft, and energetic, with a spice, and leafy-tinted finish that leaves you with dark cherries and currants on the backend. There is length, purity, lift, and softness in the finish. This is one of the potential candidates for wine of the vintage. Classic (In a modern way) in style, the wine is a blend of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Merlot. This is the highest percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the history of the estate. 12.5% ABV, 3.88 pH, The yields were a scant 25 hectoliters per hectare. Harvest took place September 28 – October 11. Drink from 2026-2055.”
Jeb Dunnuck (96/100)
“The 2021 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is one of the top wines of the vintage. It’s based on 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Merlot, harvested from September 21 to October 10, that was vinified in wooden tronconic tanks and aged entirely in new barrels. It has a deep ruby/plum hue with classic Ducru notes of pure crème de cassis, graphite, crushed stone, and violets, with a kiss of background tobacco and spicy oak. Medium to full-bodied, deep, rich, and concentrated, it has a beautiful mid-palate, ripe, building tannins, and a gorgeous finish. Checking in at 12.5% natural alcohol with a pH of 3.88, hats off to the genius of Bruno Borie and his team for producing a truly Grand Vin in this challenging vintage.”
Wine Enthusiast (96/100)
“95–97. Barrel Sample. This is a wine with enormous potential with rich tannins and dark black fruits. At the same time, it has lightness that gives it a lift of fine black currant fruits. It will age, of course.”
A silky and refined fine red wine from Saint-Julien
The estate
An iconic Saint-Julien Cru Classé, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou oversees a prestigious terroir. In the past 300 years, six families have worked ceaselessly to elevate this estate to the international reputation it enjoys today. A property of the Borie family since 1941, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou takes its name from its terroir of “beautiful pebbles” made up of Gunzian gravel. Under the leadership of Bruno Borie, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou has become one of the greatest red wines of Saint-Julien. Vintage after vintage, the estate’s wines have delighted fans of the Médoc around the world.
The vineyard
A particularity of Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is the exceptional quality of its vineyard planted on Bordeaux’s Left Bank. The vines are planted in Günzian and Pyrenean gravel soils deposited by the Gironde estuary nearly two million years ago. From these poor soils, exceptional wines are born.
