Château Pontet Canet, 5ème Cru Classé, Pauillac, 2023

Name: Château Pontet Canet, 5ème Cru Classé, Pauillac
Brand: Château Pontet Canet
Price: 585 GBP

Available Vintages

all 2011 2012 2015 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

justerini & brooks tasting note

This is the best Pontet Canet since the magnificent 2010. After more than a decade somewhat in the doldrums, Pontet is back with a beautiful 2023. Justine explained they had a bit of rain in March and June, but they didn't really experience much mildew pressure. Two heat spikes late August and early September required a little kaolin sunscreen, which they adopted in 2022 to cope with the extreme conditions. She describes the 2023 as "éclatant", which is roughly translated as brilliant or bright, an apt depiction. Somewhat muted initially, then revealing hints of dark mulberry and violets. This is measured with a clarity to the dark, mineral fruit; there's also a mineral seam at its core that provides freshness. Lots of clear textured fruit framed by sumptuous, plush tannins. This graceful, unforced style really suits Pontet Canet; a wine of impeccable balance with a long cassis, mineral and fine salt finish. Excellent. 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, matured in 50% new oak, 35% amphorae and 15% one year old barrels.

critic reviews

98-100/100Jane Anson,Inside Bordeaux

A wine to convince you of the quality and ripeness of Cabernet Sauvignon in Pauillac in this 2023 vintage, showcasing superbly supple tannins, great balance, depth and savoury blue and black fruit character, bitter cocoa bean, freshly cut herbs, black tea, fennel, all vivid and with purity of character. There is density here but it is not overt, with heightened raspberry leaf, peony and violet aromatics. Vinified in the newly-completed section of the cellars, with sunken qveri-style cement vats (and egg-shaped wooden vats coming for the 2024 vintage). 50% new oak for ageing, with 35% amphora and 15% one year old barrels. One of the wines of the vintage. New lighter bottle as of the 2022 around 490g, down from 815g in the past, 30 tonnes of CO2 saved just in terms of production. Harvest September 7, one day earlier than 2022, then slow picking through to October 10, later than many in Pauillac - and normal yields of around 40hl/h.

DRINKING WINDOW 2033 - 2050

date of review 04/2024

93-95/100Neal Martin,Vinous

The 2023 Pontet Canet, which underwent a 34 day harvest (see producer profile for detailed info), has a very pure bouquet with dark cherries, blackcurrant and touches of vanilla, cohering over the course of ten minutes in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied, with very supple tannins matched by a keen line of acidity. There is plenty of creaminess on the mid-palate, fine grip and a pinch of black pepper toward the finish. Moderate in length, there’s lovely linearity here and an underlying salinity that becomes evident with continued aeration. Very fine.

DRINKING WINDOW 2028 - 2050

date of review 04/2024

97-99/100Lisa Perrotti-Brown,The Wine Independent

The 2023 Pontet-Canet is deep garnet-purple in color. Notes of juicy blueberries, black cherries, and blackcurrant jelly spill from the glass, giving way to nuances of violets, black truffle, fertile loam, and mossy tree bark with a hint of cardamom. The medium-bodied palate is so, so silky, elegant, and fine, with perfumed black and blue fruit layers and beautiful tension, finishing long with lots of shimmery mineral and floral sparkles. The blend is 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot, aged in 50% new oak, 35% amphorae, and 15% used barrels. With an alcohol this year of just 13.8%, this is a beautifully poised, tightly packed powerhouse that promises to keep the firework displays bedazzling collectors for many years to come.

DRINKING WINDOW 2030 - 2060

date of review 04/2024

96-98/100Yohan Castaing,Robert Parker Wine Advocate

With the 2023 vintage, this estate has crafted a wine of unprecedented aromatic intensity and precision that marks a significant evolution. Revealing an elegant, fresh bouquet of mulberries and cassis mingled with notions of violets, gentian and menthol, the 2023 Pontet-Canet is medium to full-bodied, seamless and multidimensional, with a pure and precise core of fruit that's framed by ultra-refined tannins and a powerful but controlled profile, concluding with long, mineral, licorice-inflected finish. It's the result of more daring harvest decisions than in previous years: By picking the Merlot earlier to highlight fresh, fruity notes rather than baked, sun-kissed flavors and simultaneously delaying the Cabernet Sauvignon harvest until after September 28 to refine tannins, the 2023 Pontet-Canet marks a significant evolution at this renowned estate. At this early stage, its elevage appears to be more discreet, too. This wine, which I'd be delighted to own, is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, matured in 50% new oak barrels, 35% amphorae and 15% once-used barrels.

DRINKING WINDOW 2025 - 2055

date of review 04/2024