Valandraud 2021 (750ML)

94-97 JD / 96 JA / 95-96 JS / 95 VM / 94 DE / 93-94 WA / 91-93 WI

The Grand Vin 2021 Château Valandraud checks in as 85% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon, and it's still resting all in new barrels. Deep purple-hued, with rocking bouquet of ripe black and blue fruits, chocolate, spicy oak, and spring flowers, it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, velvety, ripe tannins, terrific mid-palate depth, and one heck of an impressive finish. Despite the new barrels, this wine leads with its fruit, has everything in the right places, and delivers notable freshness as well as a great finish. I'd put it up with any of the top wines out there. - Jeb Dunnuck

One of the most successful wines of the vintage. Welcoming aromatics, carefully handled, creamy raspberry and blackberry fruits, gentle toasted pine nuts and cigar box smoke. You still get the lemongrass, slate tannins and acidites that are so signature to 2021, but also a sense of pull-and-push movement of the fleshy but fresh fruits through the palate, and hidden power. Good stuff. This is a vintage where you need the warm hug of a softly smoked oak barrel, and Thunevin knows how to administer it. 29hl/h yield, 3.5ph. - Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

Full-bodied with a silky yet very firm and broad tannin structure. Lots of ripe, cool blue-fruit and stone character. Red tea, too. Textured. Well balanced and focused for the vintage. Lovely length. - James Suckling

The 2021 Valandraud is sumptuous, dark and enveloping to the core, even it some of the underlying contours need time to soften. Black cherry, plum, mocha, new leather and spice gain intensity in the glass. The rich, heady style is classic Valandraud, tempered by the distinctive qualities of the 2021 vintage. - Antonio Gallino, Vinous Media

A rich and hedonistic nose full of perfumed black fruits that are so beguiling. Smooth, supple and generous on the palate in every way - tannins are present and mouthfilling but do well to give the blackcurrant and black cherry frame in the mouth. The fruit has quite a high tone to it, stopping short of being sharp but really vibrant with sparky edges from the acidity and liquorice, clove, toasted wood and cinnamon spice. It's characterful with lots going on - well presented with elegance and a cool freshness throughout. It's the detail that is just so excellent here. It's still got a lot of youthful excitement but this has beautiful intention, direction and understated power. A bold and more hefty style for the vintage with clear confidence. - Georgina Hindle, Decanter

Opening in the glass with inviting aromas of dark berries, baking chocolate, exotic spices and vanilla pod, the 2021 Valandraud is a medium to full-bodied, ample and fleshy wine that's seamless and layered, exhibiting impressive concentration, beautifully ripe tannins and a long, succulent finish. Bursting with fruit, this is an especially elegant Valandraud, with below-average alcohol at 13.5%, but it doesn't lack for anything. Tasted four times, twice at the château. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

The 2021 Valandraud is made from 85% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, harvested from 3 to 15 October from 30-year-old vines planted on clay-limestone. It is aging in 100% new oak for 18-24 months. Deep garnet-purple colored, it slowly emerges from the glass with profound scents of stewed black plums, juicy blackberries, and raspberry leaves, plus hints of Indian spices, stewed tea, and licorice with a waft of unsmoked cigars. Medium-bodied, the palate is packed with tightly wound black fruit and exotic spices flavors, framed by firm, grainy tannins and beautifully knit freshness, finishing with great length. pH 3.5. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent