Talbot 2016 (750ML)

93-96 WS / 92-95 AG / 93-94 JS / 90-92 WA

Pure, with a core of cassis and blueberry fruit streaming through, carried by ample yet embedded graphite-edged grip. Keeps a fresh feel through the finish. Lovely. - James Molesworth, Wine Spectator

The 2016 Talbot is shaping up to be a jewel of a wine. Black cherry, plum, gravel, smoke, lavender and mint all flesh out in this decidedly imposing, vertical Saint-Julien. Concentrated and forbiddingly tannic at this stage, the 2016 is going to need at least a few years to start coming into its own. It should age gracefully for decades.The blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot. Stéphane Derenoncourt and Julien Lavenu consult. Tasted three times.Tasted two times. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

A full-bodied red that stays in check with a firm and lightly chewy tannin backbone. Full body and an intense finish. Shows excellent potential. - James Suckling

The 2016 Talbot has a conservative bouquet with slightly leafy black fruit, a subtle earthiness that percolates through with time. At first, the aromatics seem standoffish, but you gradually warm to its charms. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp and tensile tannin. There is an edginess to this Talbot, and it does not quite possess the harmony and charm of other Saint Julien 2016s. But, there is personality here—a bit curmudgeonly and yet you keep going back to take another sip. One to watch. - Neal Martin, Wine Advocate