Tour Saint Christophe 2019 (3.0L)

96-97 JS / 94-97 JD / 94-96 VM / 92-94+ WA

This is tight with finesse and focus. Minerally and salty with an ultra-fine palate and polished tannins. It goes on and on and on. Strength and finesse at the same time. 80% merlot and 20% cabernet franc. - James Suckling

From an estate that continues to fire on all cylinders, the 2019 Château Tour Saint Christophe reveals a saturated purple color to go with a pretty, floral bouquet of black raspberries, mulberries, violets, graphite, and crushed stone. Fabulously balanced, medium to full-bodied, with good acidity as well as sweet tannins, it's a finesse oriented, elegant version of this cuvée that does everything right. This estate has backed off the power and ripeness over the past few vintages, and the wine is more elegant, balanced, and seamless. It's a better wine today. - Jeb Dunnuck

The 2019 Tour Saint Christophe was picked from 27 September until 15 October at 37hl/ha. Matured in 40% new oak, this has an incredibly concentrated bouquet that needs to shrug off a little reduction when I taste it. Layers of blackberry and blueberry, wilted violets and orange rind burst from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with juicy ripe grippy tannins that frame the layers of dense black fruit tinged with allspice and graphite. It is a Saint-Émilion clearly built for the long-term, powerful and uncompromising, perhaps one that will be in need of cellaring for several years before it becomes approachable. - Neal Martin, Wine Advocate

In 2012, Hong Kong-based Peter Kwok purchased this vineyard located in Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes. The average age of vines is 30 years old. The wine is aging in 40% new oak barrels, 40% one-year-old barrels and 20% two-year-old barrels. The blend is 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, with fruit from the Cassevert lieu-dit, and the wine has 14.3% alcohol at a pH of 3.6. Deep purple-black in color, the 2019 Tour Saint-Christophe leaps from the glass with gregarious notes of fresh red and black cherries, mulberries and wild blueberries plus suggestions of eucalyptus, chocolate pie, cinnamon stick and clove oil with a waft of cedar chest. The full-bodied palate has seriously impressive freshness, featuring a firm, finely grained frame and loads of energetic black fruit layers, finishing long and spicy. - Lisa Perotti-Brown, Wine Advocate