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2005 Château Branaire-Ducru

Removed from a subterranean, temperature and humidity controlled residential cellar; Purchased upon release; Consignor is original owner

12 available
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Ends Sunday, 7pm Pacific

RATINGS

94Stephen Tanzer

Plum, chocolate and some exotic smoky oak on the nose. Lush, smooth and sweet but not at all over the top.

93Robert M. Parker Jr.

Floral nuances combined with lots of mulberry, raspberry and sweet blackcurrant fruit...medium to full-bodied, beautifully pure, textured, complex wine with soft tannin.

92Wine Spectator

Very floral, showing blueberry, licorice and mineral on the nose. Full and very silky, with beautifully polished tannins. Long and caressing. This is always very well done and good value for the quality. Best after 2010. –JS

17.5Jancis Robinson

...Good freshness and dense tannins but not too closed... Lots of obvious fruit here – though in a tannic straitjacket! This is obviously going to live a very long time. There is so much there! Very clean and refreshing.

REGION

France, Bordeaux, St.-Julien

Saint-Julien is the smallest of the four main Médoc appellations with 2,175 acres of vineyards. It is just south of Pauillac on the left bank of the Gironde, and although it has no First Growth châteaux, its 11 Classified Growth estates are widely admired. Robert M. Parker Jr. has written that winemaking in Saint-Julien from all classifications “is consistently both distinctive and brilliant.” He adds it is Médoc’s “most underrated commune.” The best-known estates are Léoville Las Cases, Ducru-Beaucaillou, Léoville Poyferré, Léoville Barton and Gruaud Larose, and most of those have riverside estates. The soil in this appellation is gravelly with clay. Cabernet Sauvignon is the main grape grown, and it is blended with Cabernet Franc, Merlot and sometimes small amounts of Petit Verdot.