CRITIC REVIEWS
Panos Kakaviatos
With more classic balance, the 2019 reminds me of the 2016 but perhaps in a lower key. It is vinous, opulent and very nicely structured. Tertiary tobacco and ripe fruit all around, with bright juiciness. The tannins approach 2016 style with silky refinement, and the blend has the most Petit Verdot of all tasted in the vertical, at 5%, perhaps lending slightly spicier tones. An exciting wine! Aged 50% new oak, 35% amphora.
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2019 Château Pontet Canet checks in as a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot that was brought up in a mix of barrels and concrete tanks. It shows the new style of the estate with a more savory, exotic, medium to full-bodied style thats a dramatically different beast than the benchmark 2009 and 2010 vintages, which to my mind, are the greatest vintages from this estate to date. The 2019 has a ruby/plum color as well as a perfumed nose of redcurrant and mulberry fruits as well as notes of brambly herbs, woodsmoke, peony, leather, and cedar pencil. Its aromatic and complex, although certainly not classic Pauillac, and on the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, with firm, savory, yet quality tannins, good balance, and outstanding length. It warrants 7-8 years of bottle age and will evolve for 30+ years. While the style of the estate has been gradually shifting with the winemaking moving to hand destemming and aging in concrete and amphora, this is the first time where the winemaking seems to dominate the wine, and the quality is unquestionably not at the same level.