La Croix Ducru Beaucaillou 2019 (750ML)

96 JS / 95 JA / 94 VM / 94 JD / 94 WE / 93+ WI / 93 WCI

Fantastic aromas of blackberries, blackcurrants, licorice and walnuts. So St.-Julien. Full-bodied with a solid core of fruit and chewy tannins that are really long and serious. Like the 1995 Ducru! One for the cellar. Needs at least until after 2028. - James Suckling

Where you can drink Le Petit Ducru relatively soon, with La Croix you need to wait a few years for the structure to soften. The tannins are silky, the black fruits drenched in espresso, liquorice root spice and smoked oak. An extremely successful La Croix, sexy and powerful while still elegant and sculpted. Give it five or six years from now, and expect a drinking window of at least 15 years. Almost entirely from specific plots within the Ducru vineyard, plus a few young vines of the Grand Vin. 60% new oak. - Jane Anson, Decanter

The 2019 La Croix Ducru Beaucaillou is matured for 12 months in 60% new oak. Interestingly, that Earl Grey tincture continues to define this very classically styled wine, enhancing the black fruit. Hints of ash emerge with time. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins and plenty of graphite-infused black fruit that render this quite Pauillac in style. Impressively persistent on the tobacco-tinged finish. Leave this for 4–5 years in bottle just to smooth its edges. - Neal Martin, Vinous Media

The second wine of this great château is the 2019 La Croix Ducru-Beaucaillou, which is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot that was raised in 60% new barrels. It fits into the lineup beautifully and sits nicely between the Le Petit Ducru and the Grand Vin. Deep purple-hued, with full-bodied aromas and flavors of pure cassis, crushed stone, graphite, lead pencil, and smoked tobacco, it has building yet fine tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish. It shows the more regal, classy, elegant, yet still concentrated style of this vintage perfectly. Give bottles a healthy decant if drinking any time soon, and it will have upwards of two decades of prime drinking. - Jeb Dunnuck

The wine has power and density. Packed with generous, firm tannins and dense fruits, the wine is a balanced blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Produced from a specific parcel, the wine will age well. Drink from 2026. Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast

A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46% Merlot, and 4% Petit Verdot, the 2019 La Croix Ducru-Beaucaillou is deep garnet-purple colored. It skips out of the glass with pretty, effortless notes of kirsch, wild blueberries, and blackcurrant cordial, plus suggestions of camphor, mossy tree bark, and unsmoked cigars. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is tightly wound with bags of youthful black fruit and loads of earthy accents, framed by firm, grainy tannins and lovely freshness, finishing long and minerally.-Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Independent

Polished, fresh, elegant and loaded with currants, cherries, tobacco, smoke, licorice, espresso and leafy herbs, the wine is medium-bodied, forward, juicy and vibrant with lift, energy and refinement on the palate and in the fruit-filled, soft-textured finish. Drink from 2023-2036.-Jeff Leve, Wine Cellar Insider