Chateau Brane-Cantenac 2005

Professional Ratings

• 94 Wine Enthusiast
  The fruit has become the main attraction here—layers of ripeness, tempered with an elegant smoothness. The tannins are certainly present in this powerful wine, but they are here to lend support, not dominate. With herbs and very clean black fruits, this is a wine to follow.
• 92 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
  Tasted at the Brane-Cantenac vertical at the château, the 2005 Brane-Cantenac is a blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc. It has a focused, conservative (for the vintage) nose with gravel-tinged red berry fruit intermingling with cedar, graphite and pine needle scents. The palate is medium-bodied with a firm structure and unlike the bottle tasted in January, which I declined to score, there is no green streak on the finish. It is very backward and some might describe it as curmudgeonly. Personally I would not touch it for another five years, even though apparently it is beginning to open according to Henri Lurton. No, I would afford it another two or three years in bottle and let's see where we are then. Tasted April 2015.
• 92 Wine Spectator
  Shows mineral and blackberry aromas, with hints of licorice. Full-bodied, with soft, silky tannins and a long, smoky, earthy, meaty and fruity aftertaste. Long and stylish. Very refined and beautiful. Best after 2012. 15,000 cases made.