The 2015 Pavillon Rouge de Margaux has a detailed, wonderfully focused bouquet of violet-infused black fruit, sublime mineralité and real sophistication; the oak is seamlessly integrated. The very well-balanced palate offers filigreed tannin and layers of sweet black cherry and cassis fruit that segue into a tensile, mineral-driven finish. Pure joy, pure class. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting.
This is very tight and compacted with a condensed palate of currant and dark-berry character. A salty and mineral undertone to the wine. Full body and firm and linear tannins. Focused and intense. Long and precise on the finish. This is the best ever second wine of Margaux. Drink after 2023.
A blend of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 4 % Petit Verdot, and 1 % Cabernet Franc, the 2015 Pavillon Rouge from Château Margaux has a medium to deep garnet color. It skips out of the glass with vibrant notes of warm black cherries, redcurrant jelly, and boysenberry preserves, plus hints of Chinese five spices, potpourri, and dusty soil. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has fantastic intensity with seductively opulent black and red fruit layers and a plush texture, finishing long and fragrant.
Tasted blind. Rather heady black-cherry nose. Rich and flattering. Only just not too much! Pretty Napa-like and a little astringent on the end.
Drink 2024-2038
Margaux's second wine used to be made from a large proportion of the Chateau's total production. There is also a third wine (that is not sold En Primeur) and a fourth wine that is sold off in bulk. The severe selection process at Chateau Margaux means that the grand vin is 35% of production but Pavillon Rouge is now only another 23%. This is half the production level of a decade ago. The blend is 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc. Aged in 60% new oak. Paul Pontallier's final notes, written shortly before his tragic and untimely death, were to declare that this is probably the best Pavillon Rouge ever produced. Deep ruby colour. The nose is extremely perfumed with hints of cassis, woodsmoke, tobacco and violets. The palate is fleshy but refined, with a silky texture revealing ripe blackcurrant and blueberry fruit. This has real verve but an underlying power that escapes many wines in this vintage. The tannic structure is very fine, with a velvet, mineral finish leaving a lingering finesse and poise that further demonstrates Margaux's quality this year.
The second wine of the estate is the 2015 Pavillon Rouge and its 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc raised in 60% new French oak. It’s a sensational wine in its own right, offering smokin’ good notes of crème de cassis, blueberries, toasted spices and ample minerality. Rich, full-bodied, opulent and concentrated with notable tannin, give bottles 4-5 years and enjoy over the following two decades or more. 2022 - 2042
The nose has a fragrant charm the start of the palate light quite fresh brambles and bilberries. Sweet in the middle supple and fleshy the mix of black fruits is ripe. Fine tannins support chocolate and coffee at the back depth the finish is lighter stylish elegance and style the fruit lingering.
In a year when the Grand Vin was superb, it’s no coincidence that Château Margaux’s second
wine is very impressive, too. Silky and fine, with plum and cassis fruit, taut acidity, subtle
oak and more backbone than you think at first. Drink: 2022-30
There is very nice concentration here, all dusted with lovely spice. This wine was made at a relaxed pace and you can feel
its confidence in the density and power which is counterpointed by wonderful delicacy and wild floral tones. Only 23%
of crop went to this wine with 35% being used for the Grand Vin. There is tenderness here, surrounding an intense core of
power and direction. This is a stunning Pavillon Rouge and a wine that will take a decade to relax and lose its tenseness.
It’s worth remembering that 10 years ago this wine would have been part of the Grand Vin and Margaux’s third wine
was used in Pavillon Rouge.
The 2015 Pavillon Rouge du Chateau Margaux, which represents just 23% of the total production, was quite open on the nose, leaning more toward the red side of the fruit spectrum rather than black with scents of cranberry, wild strawberry, blueberry and a touch of crushed stone. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy red berry fruit. This is a little firmer and more structured than I was anticipating, its backbone derived from the higher percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon (74%) than in previous vintages. As such, do not be deceived by the aromatics, because this Pavillon Rouge will deserve 3 or 4 years in bottle for those tannins to soften, but there is certainly very good potential here. Anticipated maturity: 2021 - 2035.
The 2015 Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux, which represents just 23% of the total production this year, has a higher percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon than other years, 74%, with 21% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. It has a very refined bouquet, focused and extraordinarily pure with blackcurrant, blueberry and minerals. The 50% new oak is beautifully integrated here. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, a little more masculine than I was expecting, a Pavillon with firm structure imparted by that higher proportion of Cabernet. But the freshness is ample and there is a long, satisfying graphite note that seems to last forever on the finish. What a great deuxième vin, a stunning Pavillon Rouge. Drink 2020-2045.
Shows incredible depth and power with near perfect Margaux character of black fruits and power. Full body, very tannic yet polished and refined. It’s like the gran vin but in a year like 2006 or 2007. Best ever.
Blended of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc, the 2015 Pavillon Rouge du Chateau Margaux has a medium to deep garnet-purple color and an expressive, alluringly spicy nose of cloves, cinnamon stick and fenugreek with a core of red and black currants, black cherries and wild blueberries plus a waft of pencil shavings. Medium to full-bodied with very fine, grainy tannins and wonderful freshness, it finishes long and satisfying. 2019 - 2039
Very beautifully integrated on the nose. Still quite structured on the palate. Quite ambitious. This really is the sort of wine that would have been Ch Margaux in the 1980s. Excellent freshness and length. Not at all like a second wine. Great lift towards the end. 14%
Drink 2024-2040
