Cap de Faugères 2023 is viewed as a strong value-oriented Right Bank Bordeaux, delivering ripe fruit, approachable structure, and solid concentration. Owned by the Silvio Denz family (of Faugères and Péby Faugères fame), it consistently punches above its appellation.
The 2023 vintage is praised for its freshness and balance, avoiding overripeness while retaining the plush Merlot character typical of Castillon.
Professional ratings (major critics)
- James Suckling: 91–93/100
- Jeb Dunnuck: 90–92/100
- Wine Advocate: 89–91/100
- Vinous: 89–92/100
- Falstaff: ~91/100
- Various Bordeaux reviewers: generally 90–92 points
Consensus range: ~90–92 points, with occasional highs to 93
Tasting profile (critic synthesis)
Aromas
- Black cherry, plum, blackberry
- Licorice, cocoa, baking spice
- Floral notes and subtle earth
Palate
- Medium-bodied to medium-full
- Soft, rounded Merlot-driven texture
- Ripe fruit balanced by fresh acidity
- Supple tannins and moderate oak influence
- Accessible and charming rather than profound
Style notes
- Modern but not heavily extracted
- Designed for earlier enjoyment than classified-growth Bordeaux
- Emphasizes fruit purity and drinkability
⏳ Drinking window
- Best: 2026–2033
- Enjoyable relatively young, with moderate cellaring potential
Bottom line
Cap de Faugères 2023 is:
- A well-made Castillon value wine
- Typically 90–92 points
- Plush, fruit-forward, and approachable
- Offers excellent quality-to-price ratio for Right Bank Bordeaux fans
92-93pts Jame Suckling
The blue fruit is very pretty in this medium-bodied wine. Firm, with bright acidity and finishing with precision. Salty finish, typical of Castillon.
89-91pts Jeb Dunnuck
The 2023 Château Cap De Faugères is beautiful, with a rich yet also elegant profile. Ripe raspberries, cherries, crushed stone, and floral notes all define the aromatics, and it's medium-bodied, with a focused, elegant mouthfeel, ripe yet certainly present tannins, and a great finish.
90pts Jane Anson
Inky plum colour, intense with highly charged oak notes, grilled vanilla bean, sage and rosemary, bright plum and damson, closes in quickly with its tannic charge, but there is juice here, just needs time to soften.
Winemaker's Notes
2023 was an intense winemaking year, with a mild, damp winter quickly followed by high spring temperatures that lasted throughout the summer. This was a challenging vintage for our teams, who were able to handle it well to preserve the harvest and draw out the quintessential style of each individual variety. The result is a wine that is fruity, well balanced, and of course absolutely delicious!
History
Château Cap de Faugères is a wine estate comprising 46 hectares (114 acres) of the Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux appellation in the village of Sainte-Colombe. Annually, it produces approximately 100,000 bottles of its flagship wine, a Merlot-based Bordeaux red blend with smaller quantities of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
In 1823, the Esquissaud family purchased three Faugères estates: Châteaux Cap de Faugères, Faugères and Péby Faugères. Pierre-Bernard Guisez took control of the family business in 1987 and managed the three estates up until 2005 when they were acquired by Silvio Denz, a perfume designer and European winery owner. He has since expanded the Château Cap de Faugères portfolio in collaboration with consultant oenologist, Michel Rolland.
Merlot reigns supreme at Cap de Faugères, laying claim to 85 percent of the vineyards, with Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon making up the remaining 15 percent. These vines are on average 30 years old, and are cultivated using sustainable viticultural methods.
Vinification at Château Cap de Faugères is carried out using a gravity flow system. Prior to fermentation, the grapes are cold-soaked and then fermented in a mixture of temperature-controlled stainless steel vats and wooden vats. Following fermentation, the wines are aged in oak barrels for 12-14 months.
