CHÂTEAU DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU

The 2014 Ducru-Beaucaillou is one of my favourite vintages of this decade and here it outclasses the 2015. Superb delineation, this exudes gorgeous blackberry and earthy scents on the nose, soon overtaken by saline, almost briny aromas wafting from the Gironde estuary. The palate is medium-bodied with saturated tannins, layers of black fruit, sweet with blood orange and Asian spices developing towards the finish. Blind, it might pick this as coming from a warmer summer. It’s a great Ducru-Beaucaillou with charm and personality. Tasted at the Ducru Beaucaillou vertical at the château. Drinking range: 2027 - 2050 Rating: 95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Jul 2022)

The 2014 Ducru Beaucaillou has a refined bouquet with perfumed blackberry and briary scents, the oak neatly intertwined. The palate is medium-bodied with quite a sharp, penetrating entry, the acidity here higher than its peers. It is certainly fresh and tensile, more Pauillac in style than Saint Julien, with a strong graphite presence towards the finish. Fine, but it needs a couple more years in bottle. It actually improves with aeration and develops much more finesse and panache. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2050 Rating: 95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Mar 2018)

Not much on the nose. Light, minerally and treacly but without much density. Rather dry tannins on the end. The tannins seem to slightly outweigh the fruit. Lightly salty. Need to wait for this very classic wine – which will never be a blockbuster. Drinking range: 2025 - 2040 Rating: 17 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Feb 2018)

One of the more powerful wines for the year, the 2014 Ducru-Beaucaillou surprises with its sheer concentration. A blast of dark cherry, crème de cassis, mocha, spice and chocolate makes a strong opening statement. Super-ripe, voluptuous and opulent, the wine possesses off-the-charts depth and richness. Ducru remains the most opulent and flamboyant of the 2014 Saint-Juliens. While some 2014s have faded a bit over the last two years, Ducru has barely budged. I imagine it will be many years before the 2014 starts drinking well. Proprietor Bruno Borie gave it 18 months in 100 % new French oak. Drinking range: 2024 - 2054 Rating: 95 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2017)

Opulent, with layers of warmed fig, boysenberry and blackberry confiture that loll along, yet are kept going by a terrific graphite note that is well-buried throughout. Alluring black tea, singed mesquite and bittersweet cocoa accents add to the panache. A head-turner. Drinking range: 2020 - 2040 Rating: 95 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Jan 2017)

The Château Ducru-Beaucaillou 2014 is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot that was picked between 25 September and 15 October and matured in 100% new oak as usual. The IPT is 81, the pH 3.81. Compared to recent vintages the nose is more backward, sultry and less explosive although there is still impressive concentration here. It's just "buttoned down" at present. (A second sample showed a little more sous-bois, more complexity than the first.) The palate is medium-bodied and masculine, a little chalky in the mouth with a firm backbone. Bruno Borie has overseen a more classic Ducru-Beaucaillou, one that I suspect will be less approachable than the last three vintages, boasting a Pauillac-like, graphite-infused finish that just needs to gain a little more persistence during its élevage. This is one wine that actually showed better on my second visit, demonstrating more élan and brio, but nuances notwithstanding, it is another magnificent Ducru-Beaucaillou to add to the roster. Drinking range: 2019 - 2040 Rating: 94-96 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2015)

Superb nose, totally luscious fruit for 95% Cabernet Sauvignon - pure vineyard ripeness. A total success in this vintage as one can now expect from Ducru. (Outstanding St-Julien, Decanter.) Drinking range: 2020 - 2040 Rating: 95 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2015)

The 2014 Ducru-Beaucaillou is one of the richest, most explosive wines of the year. Scents of blackberry jam, crème de cassis, graphite, pencil shavings, exotic spices and lavender meld into a plush core of super-ripe fruit in a decidedly opulent, full-throttle Ducru that is strikingly beautiful today. The 2014 is likely to require many years to drop some of its baby fat, but it is unquestionably stunning. Veins of saline-inflected minerality add a measure of freshness to the unctuous yet brooding finish. Readers who can find the 2014 should not hesitate, as it is truly magnificent. In 2014, the blend is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. Rating: 94-97 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2015)

Very dense crimson. Cedary nose. Scented and more grounded with more density than the other wines from this stable. Firm finish with lots of fine velvety tannin. Masses of tannin. One of the most backward wines. Drinking range: 2026 - 2043 Rating: 17.5 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2015)

A hint of vanilla, a touch of pepper and spice, black fruits there is a lot happening on the nose. The start of the palate has freshness, focus, precision the mid palate rich with brooding black fruit plump, ripe and sweet, supple and rounded. The richness gives way to freshness the finish vibrant long and streamlined. Drinking range: 2027 - 2040 Rating: 92-95 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (Apr 2015)

The gap between the second wine and the Grand Vin is not as great as it usually is, but maybe it's just me. Plush and ripe, with masses of colour, bags of oak and a comparatively high pH for the vintage, this is impressive rather than enjoyable, a wine that imposes a style on the vintage, not vice versa. Drinking range: 2022 - 2035 Rating: 93 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2015)

Stunning aromas of licorice, blackcurrants, minerals, dried rose petals and wet earth. Full body, incredibly intense fruit yet this remains compacted and toned with tannins. Long, long finish. What a wine Rating: 96-97 James Suckling, The Wine Spectator (Mar 2015)