Baron de Brane 2015

Super-ripe dark cherry, chocolate, plum, new leather, sweet French oak, licorice, smoke and new leather infuse the 2015 Baron de Brane. Dark, supple and inviting, with no hard edges, the 2015 is a terrific choice for drinking now and over the next few years. There is lovely depth and succulence here. Even so, I would prefer to drink the 2015 over the next few years.

The 2015 Baron de Brane has one of the more flamboyant Margaux bouquets, boasting precocious red cherry, crushed strawberry and cedar aromas, all very cohesive and displaying good vigor. The fresh, tensile palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannin, offering dark cherries, bay leaf and cedar toward the persistent finish. This is much better than the bottle opened at the vertical a few months earlier.

2015 was an exceptional vintage in this part of the world, making many second wines a shrewd value purchase. Luckily this doesn't disappoint......... You can feel a touch of heat on the finish from the alcohol, which is indiscernible in the grand vin, but you can entirely forgive it given its finesse combined with a swirl of cinnamon and a lick of fun.

Tasted blind. Very juicy and vibrant with lots of sweet fruit. Vivacity defined.
Drink 2024-2040

Deep ruby with a juicy, fine nose of cherries and dark plums. The palate is fleshy and rounded with soft tannins that allow the fruit to shine. Plush and smooth through to a long finish, with just a lick of sweet spice that only adds to the moreish nature of this wine. Great now, or over the next 5+ years.