Chateau Pontet Canet Mixed Case - 6 Bottles

Six bottles of fabulous French wine from Chateau Pontet Canet! This incredible "one of a kind" case includes 1 bottle of each of the following vintages:

1990 - 18 out of 20 Points Jancis Robinson...Still deep glossy crimson. Looks much younger than 1994. The first subtle wine of the tasting! Mineral notes and quite dry on the end. Juicy, round and sweet. Quite savoury, much more so than most 1990s. No overtly fleshy putrid notes.

1994 - 93 Points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate... One of the finest as well as longest-lived wines of the vintage, this opaque purple-coloured 1994 needs 7-10 years of cellaring. This rich, impressive, full-bodied wine represents the finest Pontet-Canet produced since 1961. This full-bodied, purely made wine is crammed with black currant fruit, as well as forbiddingly tannic and backward. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2025.

1995 - 94 Points Wine Spectator... Fabulous nose of crushed currants, blackberries and forest flowers. Full-bodied, with plenty of ripe fruit and silky tannins.

1996 - 93 Points Vinous... The second bottle, from an estate I know like the back of my hand, was the 1996 Pontet Canet. One or two people had suggested that this might be past its best; after all, it predates the innovations and application of biodynamics overseen by Alfred Tesseron by several years. On the contrary, it has aged beautifully. Cedar, scorched earth and mint blossomed on a nose that is firmly into its second phase, yet laden with more fruit than expected considering both its age and the austere style of Left Bank 1996s. The palate might be nearing the end of its drinking plateau, so don’t hold back if you own a few bottles. But I admired its balance and density, its structure and classicism, and the typical Pauillac traits of cedar and a touch of mint toward the finish. I savoured it down to the last drop.

1998 - 90 Points Vinous...The 1998 Pontet Canet was made at a time when the property practiced green harvesting that began in 1994 but is not done today. “The changes were in the mind at this stage,” commented Jean-Michel Comme wryly. Initially, it felt a little muddled on the nose but it gains focus with time. Eventually, it offers straightforward blackberry, briary and cedar scents. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, crisp acidity, plenty of cedar and mint-laced black fruit with a pleasant, quite lively and lightly spiced finish that lingers in the mouth. This is a commendable 1998 from the château before they really began to embrace biodynamics. 

1999 - 92 Points Vinous...The 1999 Pontet-Canet has long been a favourite vintage of mine. At the time, the vineyard was in better shape than it had been, according to Jean-Michel Comme, though organic/biodynamic viticulture had not yet been introduced. The bouquet is very well-defined and focused, offering blackberry, cedar and a hint of pine forest gently unfolding. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, a fine bead of acidity, plenty of black fruit and a fine grip. There is a greater sense of rondeur compared to young bottles that I encountered, and touches of white pepper and clove appear toward the satisfyingly persistent finish. One of the best Pauillacs of this vintage.