Rocking stuff, the 2018 Clos du Marquis checks in 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, and 6% Cabernet Franc that hit 14.5% alcohol with a healthy pH of 3.64 and an IPT of 79. It boasts a deep, saturated purple color as well as ripe, powerful, yet complex aromatics. Full-bodied and rich, with a stacked mid-palate, this beauty builds on the palate with ripe, polished tannin, ample oomph, and a great finish. It’s a powerful, concentrated wine from the team at Léoville Las Cases that will benefit from 5-7 years of bottle age and keep for two decades. - jebdunnuck.com, May 2019

The purple-fruit and black-olive character with violet undertones is wonderful here. Full-bodied, yet reserved and intense. Finesse. Graphite and minerality. Layered. - April 2019

The 2018 Clos du Marquis is composed of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc, with 13% press wine added back to the blend. The wine has 14.5% alcohol and was aged in 55% new barriques. Deep garnet-purple colored, it strolls confidently out of the glass with notes of warm cassis, ripe black plums and boysenberries and hints of underbrush, cedar chest, graphite and black olives plus a touch of baking spices. The medium to full-bodied palate is jam-packed with juicy blackberry layers, supported by firm, grainy tannins and bags of freshness, finishing long with an invigorating burst.

The 2018 Clos du Marquis is composed of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc, with 13% press wine added back to the blend. Grapes were harvested September 18 to October 10, with yields of 35.5 hectoliters per hectare, and the wine has 14.5% alcohol. It will be aged in barriques, 55% new. The finished blend was put into barrels last December. Deep purple-black in color, it displays flamboyant scents of kirsch, crushed black cherries and warm cassis with hints of cinnamon stick, underbrush and chocolate box plus a waft of sandalwood. Full-bodied and built like a brick house with firm, grainy tannins and bold freshness supporting the muscular fruit, it finishes long and spicy. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, April 2019, The Wine Advocate

Proprietor Catherine Papon-Nouvel turned out a gorgeous Clos Saint Julien in 2018. Black cherry, plum, espresso, menthol, licorice and smoke build as this sumptuous, full-bodied Saint-Émilion shows off its curvy, racy personality. A wine of real character, Clos Saint Julien is a winner. The tiny 1.2 hectare vineyard sits on Saint-Émilion's vaunted limestone plateau and is planted with 50% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Franc, the same blend as the wine itself.

Fine, pretty nose of ripe dark fruit. Nicely balanced palate with rich fruit and good freshness. - April 2019

The 2018 Clos du Marquis has a rich and forward bouquet with layers of red berry fruit mixed with camphor and touches of iron filings. The palate is rich and powerful, rounded in texture with white pepper and thyme infusing the black fruit. This is a voluminous and powerful Clos du Marquis with depth and girth, leading to a tannic finish that will need a few years to soften. Good potential.

64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc. 55% new oak, pH 3.64. Barrel sample. Deep purple core and bright purple rim. Deep, dark and charry. Combination of ripe and intense cassis and a rocky, more savoury quality to add complexity, yet it's scented too. Tannins are incredibly fine, many layered, dry and yet supple. And great freshness. A very good second wine. (JH)

Tasted blind. Correct, well-balanced, classic claret on the nose and palate for fairly immediate drinking. Dry but correct. (JR)