Farr Vintners Logo

Valandraud 2019

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyMerlot

Valandraud is painstakingly hand made in new, mainly Seguin Moreau, oak barrels by the guru of the garagistes Jean-Luc Thunevin and his wife Murielle. First produced in 1991 (just 1900 bottles) with the help of Ausone's Alain Vauthier, this was the first of the "Garage Wines" of Saint Emilion and is still the benchmark by which all others are judged. Previously seen as an "outsider", Valandraud was awarded Premier Grand Cru Classé status in the 2012 classification of the wines of Saint Emilion. To our palate Valandraud has become more sophisticated in recent vintages.

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Château de Valandraud

Label

Tasting Notes

Rich and dramatic, the 2019 Valandraud bursts with aromas of berry fruit, plums and licorice, framed by a lavish but far from exaggerated application of creamy new oak. Full-bodied, fleshy and sensual, it's broad and enveloping, its lavish core of fruit framed by ripe, polished tannins and succulent balancing acids. Seamless and integrated despite its ripe, hedonistic style, this has turned out beautifully and has the balance to perform well for at least two decades, even if there's no youthful asperity to preclude near-term enjoyment. 2021 - 2041

96
William Kelley, Wine Advocate (April 2022), April 2022

From: Bordeaux 2019: The Southwold Tasting (Feb 2023)

The 2019 Valandraud has a generous and oaky bouquet with blueberry and blackberry commingling with vanillary scents. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red fruit, velvety smooth in texture lending it a modern sheen, overtly oaky although I feel there is sufficient fruit behind it. This is defined by the winemaking rather than the terroir at the moment but it will come through with time. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.

- By Neal Martin on January 2023

Drink 2025-2050

91+
Neal Martin, vinous.com (Southwold), February 2023

Vivid and focused with brightness and clarity of fruit. Dried flowers, too. Full-bodied with layers of fine, soft tannins that spread across the palate and show class and refinement. It goes on for minutes. A beautiful bottle. Try after 2027, but so attractive already.

98
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, January 2022

The 2019 Valandraud, made from 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon, is deep garnet-purple in color. Oak notes dominates on the nose to begin, giving way to a core of baked black cherries, dried mulberries, and boysenberry preserves, plus a suggestion of Chinese five spice. The full-bodied palate delivers decadent, mouth-coating black fruits with a firm, grainy texture and racy backbone, finishing long and layered. Allow it another 4-5 years in cellar and drink it over the next 20-years+.

97
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, May 2023

This is gorgeous. There is high alcohol here and you do feel a slight trace of heat, but it is met by fruit that rises to fill in every step through the palate, along with cocoa beans, chocolate shavings, plum, boysenberry, loganberry, all textured, welcoming, juicy fruits of autumn, alongside cigar box, cold ash, shot through with smoke and bitter chocolate. So good.

97
Jane Anson, JaneAnson.com, January 2022

Tasted blind. Very rich, ripe fruit with a suggestion of dried fruit. Then just a little sour on the palate. Sweet and sour elements as yet unknit but there is quite a bit of tannin (and acid) so presumably they will eventually. Long. 15.5%
Drink 2027– 2044

16+
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, February 2023

The local bad boy of Bordeaux, Jean-Luc Thunevin, continues to fashion truly brilliant wines, and his 2019 is no exception. Based largely on Merlot with small amount of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2019 Château Valandraud is a deep purple-hued beauty offering up a kaleidoscope-like bouquet of black and blue fruits, scorched earth, chocolate, gravelly earth, spicy oak, and sappy flowers. Deep, rich, full-bodied, and wonderfully concentrated, it has insane purity of fruit, brilliant tannins, a stacked mid-palate, and just has everything in the right places. It's up with the top wines of the vintage and a tour de force that readers should snatch up. It shows a very different style than the sexier 2018, but it's every bit as good. It needs 4-5 years of bottle age and will evolve for 2-3 decades.

99
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, April 2022
Read more tasting notes...

The 2019 Valandraud remains deep in color and yes, the bouquet marches out of the glass with its upfront, precocious aromas of black cherry and boysenberry fruit, plus touches of pressed violet crushed stone. The palate is medium-bodied, complex and harmonious, with fine, very supple tannins, a keen line of acidity and a slightly creamy-textured finish. As I mentioned in my previous note, it belongs within the top tier of Right Bank wines in this vintage. 2025 - 2050

97
Neal Martin, vinous.com, February 2022

Extremely polished and refined red with structure. It’s full-bodied, yet ever so refined and balanced. The tannins are very fine-grained. Chewy, yet energetic and precise. Tight and integrated at the end.

97/98
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, May 2020
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.