The 2019 Château Pontet Canet checks in as a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot that was brought up in a mix of barrels and concrete tanks. It shows the new style of the estate with a more savory, exotic, medium- to full-bodied profile that’s a dramatically different beast than the benchmark 2009 and 2010 vintages, which, to my mind, are the greatest from this estate to date. The 2019 has a ruby/plum color as well as a perfumed nose of redcurrant and mulberry fruits, plus notes of brambly herbs, woodsmoke, peony, leather, and cedar pencil. It’s aromatic and complex, though certainly not classic Pauillac, and on the palate it’s medium to full-bodied, with firm, savory yet quality tannins, good balance, and outstanding length. It warrants 7–8 years of bottle age and will evolve for 30+ years. While the style of the estate has been gradually shifting with the winemaking moving to hand destemming and aging in concrete and amphora, this is the first time the winemaking seems to dominate the wine, and the quality is unquestionably not at the same level.

Very lush out of the gate, with waves of gently mulled plum, blackberry and black currant fruit that roll through slowly, lined with alder, sweet tobacco, worn cedar and singed savory notes. Delivers a late tug of iron that's well-buried on a finish marked by lingering perfume, resulting in an end impression of a rich wine that's very light on its feet. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2023 through 2036.

The 2019 Pontet Canet was picked from September 23 until October 10, finishing with the Petit Verdot, and bottled in mid-June/July. My sample, tasted at the property, was decanted. Matured in 50% new oak and 35% concrete amphora, this is endowed with an intense, enveloping bouquet of opulent blackberry and boysenberry fruit laced with crushed violet and light fig aromas, becoming more floral with aeration and revealing crushed violet petals. The palate is medium-bodied with layered black fruit, cracked black pepper, hints of pencil lead and a splash of soy. This is one of the most powerful Pauillac wines that I encountered this vintage, very juicy and with plenty of rondeur on the very spicy finish. This should give three decades of drinking pleasure.

The aromas to this are really amazing, with a potpourri of spices and dried flowers, as well as redcurrants, sweet plums and even some peaches. Full-bodied with layers of ripe fruit and ultra-fine tannins that spread across the palate in an encompassing yet always elegant and pure way. It’s succulent and unadulterated. Like crushed, perfectly ripened grapes. The length is rather endless. The tannins build. Fabulous young red.

The blend this year is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. Very deep purple-black in color, the 2019 Pontet-Canet shows the most gorgeous, lifted perfume of lilacs, dark chocolate, Morello cherries and rosehip tea over a core of crème de cassis, plum preserves, licorice and woodsmoke, with a waft of fragrant earth. Full-bodied, rich and fantastically opulent, the palate offers layer upon layer of ripe, finely grained tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long with a mineral lace. A real head-turner, this beauty is absolutely going to steal your heart!