Chateau Cantenac Brown 2022

Chateau Cantenac Brown Troisieme Grand Cru Classe Margaux, Bordeaux, France, 2022

Grapes: A blend of 71.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot and 1.5% Cabernet Franc, gravel/clay/limestone soils, aged 16 months in French oak barrels (60% new)

Producer Tasting Note:

2022, offers to the great wine of Cantenac Brown a nose with a complex and refined palette: violet, black fruits, liquorice and nutmeg. The palate is characterised by a soft and creamy attack, carried by an exceptional concentration of silky and velvety tannins. The density and length gives to Cantenac Brown 2022 a remarkable finish.

Critics' Tasting Notes:

"Medium to full intensity, plenty of depth and character through the palate here. Excellent quality, vivid, character, not too sweet, has kept lift and character and tension, touches of fern and iris, with cassis puree, blackberry, graphite. Very good, 60% new oak barrels. Delivering on En Primeur promise"  Drink 2028-2042

96/100 points, Jane Anson - Inside Bordeaux, December 2024

"Bottled in late June 2024, the 2022 Cantenac Brown has turned out well in bottle, exhibiting a complex bouquet of plums, dark berries and cherries, mingled with hints of pen ink, violets and pencil shavings. Full-bodied, dense and pure, with a rich chassis of sweet, integrated tannins, this is a serious, complete Margaux that's built for the cellar."  Drink 2030-2055

95/100 points, William Kelley, WINE ADVOCATE, March 2025

"Having performed brilliantly in recent years, the estate has produced a benchmark vintage in 2022. Led by a high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (71.5%)—sourced from the plateaus of Margaux and Cantenac—the wine immediately makes a statement with its deep, black-hued appearance. Sixteen months of barrel ageing (60% in new oak) impart subtle toasted notes to a bouquet redolent of ripe yet fresh fruit, such as blackcurrant and raspberry. A striking sense of freshness runs throughout the palate, which is refined, slender, and possesses a silky texture—extending even to the tannins. Exceptionally long, simultaneously concentrated and ethereal, and crafted with the precision of a master jeweler, this wine epitomises the class of Margaux. It is built for the long haul."

Remarkable Wine - 2 Stars (out of 3) and Coup de Coeur, Le Guide Hachette des Vins, 2026

Food Match: Red meats (Beef bourguignon, herb-seasoned lamb chops), Game & Poultry (venison, chicken with morels, or rich duck), Cheeses (Aged Comté, or creamy Époisses)