Château Branaire-Ducru, Saint-Julien, FR 2022 (MAGNUM)

The 2022 Château Branaire-Ducru is widely regarded as one of the finest wines ever produced by the estate. A blend of 60.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31.5% Merlot, 5.5% Cabernet Franc, and 2.5% Petit Verdot, it exemplifies the elegance of Saint-Julien while delivering unprecedented depth and concentration.

Professional Ratings

Tasting Profile

Aromatics

• Cassis and blackberry
• Black raspberry
• Violet and dried flowers
• Graphite
• Tobacco leaf
• Cedar spice

Palate

• Medium- to full-bodied
• Silky, layered texture
• Concentrated dark fruit
• Remarkable freshness and precision
• Fine-grained tannins

Finish

• Long and seamless
• Mineral-driven with graphite and floral notes
• Exceptional balance and aging potential

Critics consistently praised the wine's freshness, charm, and drinkability despite its concentration, with notes of cassis, black raspberry, graphite, tobacco, and floral complexity.

Sommelier Presentation Note

2022 Château Branaire-Ducru, Saint-Julien
One of the standout wines of Bordeaux's exceptional 2022 vintage, offering aromas of cassis, blackberry, violets, graphite, and tobacco. Silky and beautifully balanced, the palate layers concentrated dark fruit with refined tannins and mineral precision, culminating in a long, elegant finish.

Decanter

One of the standouts of the vintage that impressed equally on three different occasions. Fragrant and expressive on the nose, lovely scents and dark fruits. Smooth and crisp, silky but concentrated, such precision and detail straight away with succulent and juicy acidity. There’s concentration no doubt, it’s ripe and intense, the dark perfumed blackcurrants and black cherries give a serious backbone and tension to the wine, while the minty, stony freshness carries the flavour and gives the energy and definition. Excellently weighted on the palate, with structure and a mouthwatering sensation that comes in once the weight settles. So well constructed with a beautiful texture and overall integration of all the elements. Exceptional quality and drinkability on offer with a delicious salty, graphite and flint finish that puts you at the estate. Overlook this at your peril. (GH)

James Suckling

The fine and intense tannins are very impressive because they fold beautifully into the wine, with blackcurrants, black cherries, hints of chocolate and hazelnuts. It's full-bodied with tight and focused fruit and a long and classy finish. Fantastic definition to this. Fresh.

Wine Advocate

A brilliant wine that's the finest young vintage I've tasted at this Saint-Julien estate, the 2022 Branaire-Ducru wafts from the glass with aromas of violets, blackberries, sweet cassis, licorice and pencil shavings, followed by a medium to full-bodied, layered and multidimensional palate that's succulent, sapid and perfumed, framed by supple tannins and concluding with a long, mouthwatering finish. It's a blend of 60.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31.5% Merlot, 5.5% Cabernet Franc and 2.5% Petit Verdot that checks in at a healthy pH of 3.65. Why is it so good this year? In addition to the quality of the vintage, the new gravity-flow winery means fruit can be handled more gently, and picked more precisely, sub-block by sub-block, as the team now have fully 63 vats at their disposal, almost double their capacity through 2020. Given the Maroteaux family's sensible approach to pricing, this is likely to number among the must-purchase wines of the 2022 vintage, and it comes warmly recommended. (WK)