Clos Fourtet 2018 (750ML)

97 Points, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Clos Fourtet (a blend of 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Franc) opens with wonderfully pure, intense black fruit notes of ripe blackberries, crushed black cherries and warm plums, leading to suggestions of pencil lead, clove oil, black olives and aniseed. The medium to full-bodied palate is chock-full of muscular black fruits, delivering compelling vivacity and tension, framed by velvety tannins and finishing epically long and perfumed. The intense, bright, energetic fruit on this 2018 has been impeccably preserved. Stunning!" 03/21

95 Points, Neal Martin, Vinous: "The 2018 Clos Fourtet has a wonderful bouquet of mixed red and black fruit mingled with graphite and melted tar, all very focused and well delineated. The well-proportioned palate delivers fine-grained tannins, a perfect bead of acidity and very pure black fruit laced with tobacco toward the finish. I maintain that it is less flamboyant than recent vintages, which suits its well. This is going to age beautifully." 03/21

98 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous: "The 2018 Clos Fourtet is one of the most elegant, refined wines of the vintage. Silky and aromatically expressive, Clos Fourtet is all grace. Blue/purplish fruit, lavender, spice, menthol and sage all lift from the glass. Even with all of the natural richness of the year, Clos Fourtet sizzles with tension and delineation. Then again, that is the magic of the Saint-Émilion plateau. Clos Fourtet is easy to look past in 2018. It is neither exuberant nor exotically ripe. Instead, everything is in reserve. The 2018 is a magical wine, that's all there is to it. Don't miss it." 03/21

96 Points, James Suckling, jamessuckling.com: "Beautiful blueberries and black cherries with crushed-stone and limestone notes. Juniper, too. It’s full-bodied, yet so linear and energetic with focused, fine tannins. Fresh acidity. Really fine-grained tannins here. Drink after 2025." 02/21

96-99 Points, James Molesworth, Wine Spectator: "Dark plum and boysenberry fruit is laced with tobacco and chalk notes, while the fleshy grip slowly builds through the finish. This is seriously long, and though the fruit is gorgeous, the minerality steals the show in the end." 03/19

96-98 Points, Jane Anson, Decanter: "Easily as good as the 2015 at this estate, the 2018 may even prove to be better after some ageing. There is depth and concentration to the berry fruits, but also a fine quality to the tannins and a softness overall that suggests nothing was pushed, that all of this power is simply what was naturally given by the vintage. It's very good quality, true to the confidence of the estate, pulsating with rich raspberry and damson notes and playing between a seductive gourmet edge and maintaining its limestone freshness. I have enjoyed a number of older vintages of this wine recently, and I feel pretty sure that this will grow into one of those wines that you are so happy to open after a few decades of ageing. 33hl/ha yield. 60% new oak." 04/19

95-97 Points, Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com: "Tasted on two separate occasions, the 2018 Château Clos Fourtet is a beauty, offering a ripe, powerful style in its crème de cassis, spice box, liquid rock, and incense aromas and flavors. Checking in as a blend of 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon that will see 16 months in 60% new oak, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, loads of flesh, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It's slightly more approachable and sexier than the Canon, which shares a similar terroir on the upper plateau, but it's going to evolve beautifully for at least 20-25 years. It's a beautiful wine very much in the style of the vintage." 05/19