Pontet Canet 2017 (750ML)

96 WI / 96 WE / 96 JS / 95 VM / 95 DE / 16+

#66 Wine Enthusiast's Top 100 Cellar Selections of 2020

#91 James Suckling's Top 100 Wines of France 2020

A blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot, the 2017 Pontet-Canet is deep garnet-purple colored. It skips out of the glass with youthful notes of black raspberries, fresh blackcurrants, and Morello cherries, plus touches of iris petals, forest floor, and crushed rocks. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is laden with vibrant black and red fruit layers, framed by ripe, velvety tannins and gorgeous freshness, finishing long and fragrant. This is such a pretty wine! - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Independent

The perfume intensity of this wine is remarkable. Firm yet velvety at the same time, the tannins are the prelude to the pure, opulent blackberry fruits and balanced acidity. The lines of the wine are clear and direct, a true promise for aging. Drink from 2024. - RV, Wine Enthusiast

This has ethereal transparency to it with a fresh, red-berry and cherry nose. Terra-cotta and dried-flower notes. Plums, too. Quite complex. The palate has a very detailed tannin texture with attractive cassis and blueberries that hold very long, fresh and pure. Fruity and fresh. Try from 2023. - James Suckling

A gorgeous, alluring Pauillac, the 2017 Pontet-Canet is racy and exceptionally polished, with floral top notes that bring out the natural brightness of the red-toned fruit. Super-silky tannins add to the wine's immediacy and sheer allure. The 2017 was the first wine made with the new sorting table. About half the fruit was destemmed by hand. As always, visiting Pontet-Canet is like stepping back into another time, a time in which wines were made much more manually than they are today. Here that means manual punch downs and pump overs, with no electricity. Harvest ran from September 18 through October 4. The blend is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. Aging was done 50% in new oak, 35% in amphora and 15% in one year-old oak. Tasted three times. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

A rich seam of fruit here, full of gorgeous brambly and bilberry fruits, cinnamon and smoke, with a real focus on the aromatics. If it lacks the vibrancy of the 2016, it is absolutely delivering a sense of vertical slate texture and minerality. A lovely wine with sinews and delicacy and punch. 50% new oak, 35% amphoras, 15% one year oak. The nose get better and better in the glass, this is enticing and full of personality, easy to recommend. Drinking Window 2024 - 2045 - Jane Anson, Decanter

Crimson hue but lighter and more transparent at the rim. Open and expressive already with red and dark fruit notes and a hint of leaf and mint. Medium to light-bodied, the palate supple and fruit forward, the tannins light but fresh and fine. Holds a certain charm but not for the long haul. (JL) - Jancis Robinson