CHÂTEAU PAVIE MACQUIN

The 2016 Pavie-Macquin is a blend of 82% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon matured in 50% new oak, picked from 7 October (with the young Merlot vines) until 22 October. The pH is 3.35 and it has 14.4% alcohol. I appreciate the intensity of this Pavie-Macquin. This is no shy retiring flower but comes out with cylinders pumping while maintaining the delineation, the detail that you look for. The palate is smooth and sensual on the entry, velvety in texture with plenty of luscious red berry fruit, vanilla and a hint of blueberry. It glides across the palate, the new oak neatly integrated. This is easily my pick of Nicolas Thienpont's 2016s and one of the best Pavie-Macquins that I have tasted at this stage. Drinking range: 2026 - 2050 Rating: 94-96 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)

Very dark. Pretty thick and ripe on the nose (2% Cabernet Sauvignon). Balsamic de Modena character! Just a bit much for me but I have to admire it. Big and beefy. Rather hard work. Very much sets its cap at the blockbuster lover. Well done within that framework... Marmite end. Drinking range: 2026 - 2040 Rating: 16.5+ Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2017)

Juicy and alluring, with dark fig, cherry and currant fruit that has melded together, while lively minerality and anise notes course underneath. The long, refined finish has a gorgeous yin-yang between cashmere and chalky threads. Rating: 94-97 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2017)

This is a really fantastic PM! The licorice, fresh mushroom, sous bois and stone character is so exciting. It’s full and very layered with exceptional depth and length. Compressed and focused. Pure silk. Rating: 97-98 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2017)

This is a Derencourt-Thienpont wine, working together as a consultancy. Deep, intense, autumnal berry fruits make for a great St-Émilion delivering huge impact. It veers towards chunky, but the tannins are not solid and there is a freshness and life to them that makes them present without being choking. Very good indeed. Drinking range: 2027 - 2050 Rating: 94 Jane Anson, Decanter (Apr 2017)

A wine of total finesse, the 2016 Pavie Macquin is also one of the most riveting wines of the vintage. Silky and supple on the palate, with no hard edges and exceptional balance, it takes over all the senses and never lets up. The flavors are bright, precise and beautifully nuanced. Above all else, Pavie Macquin is a wine of elegance, and that is exactly what comes through in the 2016. The wine plays in the dimensions of bright, floral-infused, red-toned fruits, silky tannins and length more than pure power or breadth. The 2016 is a stunningly beautiful bottle of wine and one of the finest reds of the year - it's as simple as that. In 2016, Nicolas Thienpont opted for long macerations of around four weeks in a combination of cement and oak. Rating: 96-99 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)

Rating: 89 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2017)

The 2016 Pavie-Macquin has a harmonious, intense bouquet of layered black cherry, bilberry and light tobacco notes; the oak is very well integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, and slightly higher in acidity than I would like, although it has an irresistible silky finish. The question is, where will it go? I have found a little bottle variation and I feel this suffered because the palate might be closing down. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2045 Rating: 91 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Dec 1899)