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Pontet Canet 2014

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pauillac
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyCabernet Sauvignon/Merlot

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Château Pontet-Canet

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Tasting Notes

A stunning wine for this vintage although it’s still a bit shy on the nose (more spice than fruit showing than now). There’s wet earth, too, but on the palate it’s bursting with ripe yet subtle flavors. Very long and complex finish that goes on and on.

98
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, February 2017

The 2014 Pontet-Canet, now in bottle, was tasted twice during my trip to Bordeaux. It has an attractive bouquet: graphite tinged black fruit, incense and violets, perhaps a little more hedonistic than I envisaged when I tasted it from barrel. The palate is medium-bodied with tensile tannin thanks to the keen line of acidity. I like the precision of this Pontet-Canet. It feels linear and correct, pencil lead notes developing towards the second half, more quintessentially Pauillac than previous vintages, with what you might describe as a classic Pauillac finish that retains the focus that I remarked upon from barrel. Tasted February 2017. Drink 2020-2045

94
Neal Martin, Wine Advocate (Interim En), April 2017

The 2014 Pontet-Canet is composed of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet colored, it needs coaxing to reveal a profound core of baked plums, creme de cassis, and cigar box with wafts of tapenade, wood smoke, and mossy bark, plus a spicy hint of cumin seed. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has an impressive foundation of ripe, grainy tannins and lively acidity supporting the muscular black fruits, finishing on a lingering peppery note.

96
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, June 2022

If anything, denser and bluer than the 2015! Polished tannins and not the most intense on the nose but with great balance and suavity. A charming vintage though less intense than some 2014s. Very dry finish.
Drink 2024-2040

16.5
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, May 2018

Alfred Tesseron has been making classic Pauillac here since the early 1990's and recent vintages have been amongst the best ever, scoring impressively when shown in blind tastings. Grapes are manually sorted by a team of 30 people on specially made sorting tables. The vineyard has been organic and bio-dynamic for 10 years and is worked by horses. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. 50% new oak, 15% one year old barrels, 35% concrete amphoras. This is the 10th vintage produced biodynamically. Bright purple colour in the glass. Blueberry, sweet vanilla and black cherry on the nose. Rich and enticing aromas. The palate is plush with high levels of glycerol and a juicy blueberry, blackcurrant and black cherry fruit core. The rich charcoal and toast notes from new oak are lifted by refreshing acidity. The finish is smooth and ripe, with a lovely sweet vanilla note on the long finish.

94+
Farr Vintners, March 2015

A final blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot, the 2014 Pontet-Canet is brilliant stuff, and I was able to taste this wine from barrel as well as multiple times from bottle, both at the estate and from a bottle purchased in the United States. It offers a sensational bouquet of crème de cassis, black raspberries, tobacco leaf, and minerals, as well as an unmistakable Pauillac lead pencil characteristics that I just adore. Possessing full-bodied richness, a rounded, surprisingly opulent, sexy texture, awesome purity, and sweet, succulent tannin, it’s a sensational 2014 that might just surpass what they accomplished in 2015. This is a 2014 you won’t regret buying in bulk as it’s going to keep for 2-3 decades and be drinkable for the vast majority of it. Bravo to Alfred Tesseron and his team! 2020 - 2045

96
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, November 2017

This delivers a notable menthol note, showing an ample core of well-steeped blackberry, plum and black currant fruit. A bright anise streak checks in on the back end, with a slightly loamy structure imparting a broad feel through the finish. Needs to pull together a bit more, but the fruit is there. Best from 2020 through 2030.

93
James Molesworth, WineSpectator.com, February 2017

Bright fresh fruits on the nose fragrant and floral the palate though is sweeter and richer depth of fruit mid richness the fruit underpinned by ripe tannins. Lighter at the back slightly fresher the finish has length and a fragrant charm. 2027-40

90/94
Derek Smedley MW, April 2015

After a tricky vintage in 2013, when Pontet-Canet misjudged the market too, this is an impressive return to form for this biodynamic property. Bold, concentrated and built to last, it's smoky, compact and powerful, with classy oak usage, plush black fruits, savoury tannins and very good length.

94
Tim Atkin MW, timatkin.com, April 2015
95
Decanter.com, April 2015
Read more tasting notes...

The Château Pontet-Canet 2014 was picked between 29 September and 10 October, the 10th biodynamically. It is initially quite reticent, a little broody in the glass. However, it unfolds with each swirl revealing a very pure and I feel, a more contained and classic bouquet compared to the 2013: blackberry, graphite, minerals and a touch of incense. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, quite tensile tannin. The acidity is very well judged – crescendo of flavors that lead to a precise, lightly spiced, quite vivacious finish. What I like here is that it is very Pauillac, in the sense that I feel that recent vintages were flirting with deviating too far away from what a typical Pauillac ought to be. This is unmistakable in terms of where it comes from, but there it retains that sense of focus and mineralité that ensures this is a total success for the vintage. I find this more appealing than the 2013 last year and this 2014 should be a vintage that puts a smile on Jean-Michel Comme's face. Drink: 2018-2035.

93/95
Neal Martin, RobertParker.com (218), April 2015

The strength of this Pontet Canet is very impressive, making it structured and tannic with a long and intense finish. Yet it turns to bright and vivid fruits. Full body. A modern classic. It builds on the palate.

95/96
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2015

Deep garnet with a hint of purple to the color, the 2014 Pontet-Canet gives a very serious, classic Pauillac nose of blackcurrant preserves, baked blackberries and warm black plums with suggestions of menthol, pencil lead, woodsmoke, cassia and cast-iron pan plus a hint of baking spices. Medium to full-bodied, it fills the mouth with black and blue fruit preserves with a rock-solid frame of grainy tannins and bold freshness, giving lift to the long, exotic spice-laced finish. It is approachable now, but really should start to make jaws drop in another 4-5 years.

95
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, RobertParker.com, May 2020

Tasted blind. Light but well-integrated nose. Edgy tannins on the end. Long way from being ready to drink but the ingredients are there for a savoury, chunky Pauillac.
Drink 2025-2040

16.5+
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, February 2018

A robust, intense nose. Rich and toasty flavours. Lots of tannin, but very ripe tannin. Quite raw and rude in some ways. Then a great weight of fruit on the finish. Just a little dryness on the end. But distinctive overall. Energetic. Very confident and robust. Not fine and refined but admirably confident.
Drink 2023-2035

17
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2015
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.