2014 Brane Cantenac Bordeaux Red

2014 Brane Cantenac

95 WE

Featured Review

This is a complete wine, full of both tannins and great swathes of ripe fruit. It has a serious side as well in its solid structure and concentration. The juicy blackberry fruits are beginning to calm down and meld into a fine dense wine that will age very well. Drink from 2025. Wine Enthusiast

Wine Enthusiast | 95 WE

Harvesting right through until 17th October was rewarded by well-ripened Cabernet that shows itself in the plush, carefully extracted plummy fruit. This is a lovely wine that shows how carefully and precisely Brane has built up its fruit definition and texture over the past few years. It's unquestionably a successful wine, with poise, fluidity and confident tannins. Drinking Window 2024 - 2036.

Decanter | 92 DEC

A little bit lighter than some of the 2014 Margauxs, but this is quite an elegant wine with a long, dry finish of some sophistication. Drink now or hold.

James Suckling | 92 JS

The 2014 Brane-Cantenac has a very classy bouquet, very well defined with blackberry, cedar and tobacco scents, that trademark graphite scent emerging with a few swirls of the glass. It is exactly what you expect from this Margaux estate. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, well-judged acidity, graphite and cedar towards the linear finish that will clearly need several years to unfold. Classic Margaux really, but wise owls will cellar it away for several years.

Robert Parker Neal Martin | 92 RP-NM

The 2014 Brane-Cantenac is similar to the bottle poured blind at the Southwold tasting just a few weeks earlier. It has a crisp red currant and cranberry bouquet laced with tobacco, cedar and chalk. The palate is well defined and beautifully balanced, delivering crisp acidity and fine tannin. This is unashamedly taut and linear, but it displays commendable energy on the mineral-driven finish. Great potential here, although I would advise giving it a few years in bottle. Tasted at the Brane-Cantenac vertical at the property.

Vinous Media | 92 VM

Type of Wine	Bordeaux Red : Picture in your mind a combination of cedar, lead pencil, blackcurrant, plum and mineral aromatics, and texture that caresses your palate like a playful lover. The experience is thrilling from the first whiff to the final seconds of a tannic, generous finish - that is what you'll get from a Bordeaux Red
Varietal	Bordeaux Blend
Country	France : Wine is the lifeblood that courses through the country of France, pulsing with vigorous pride and determination. Viticulture is not just a hobby or an occupation in France; it is a passion, a cherished tradition that has been passed down through generations of wine stained hands. Winemaking is a beloved art that has been ingrained in the culture, an aptitude instilled in sons by fathers and the hallmark for which France’s reputation was built, allowing it to be renowned as, arguably, the most important wine producing country in the world. For centuries, France has been producing wines of superior quality and in much greater quantity than any other country in the world. It boasts some of the most impressive wine regions, coveted vineyards and prestigious wines on earth. The regions of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone, Sauternes and Champagne have become the benchmark, for which others aspire to become. Legendary producers such as Chateaux Margaux, Domaine De La Romanee Conti, Chapoutier, d’Yquem and Dom Perignon are idolized world-wide. France has stamped its name on nearly every style of wine, from the nectar-like sweet Sauternes to hedonistic Chateauneuf Du Papes classic Bordeaux and Burgundy, to its sparkling dominance in Champagne. Many of the most infamous grape varietals in the world, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay originated in France and are not only beloved, but utilized in the creation of some of the greatest wines on earth. French wine production commands the attention of the wine market year after year. With over 860,000 hectares under vine, and numbers close to 50 million hectoliters of wine produced annually, France dominates the market and sets the standard for not only product quality, but also quantity. France’s many contributions to the world of wine have been absolutely indispensable. The country is the originator of the term “Premier Cru,” coined the term Terroir (a French term so complex there is no literal translation) and has laid the blueprint for a structured appellation system, which others have implemented in their own countries. French vineyard techniques and winemaking practices are mimicked world-wide. California vintners have been replicating Rhone style wines for decades, South America has adopted the French varietal of Malbec and countries around the world are imitating Burgundian styled Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. With vast diversity in terroir, France is home to some of the most hospitable winegrowing locations on earth. The combination of topography, geology, climate, rainfall and even the amount of sunlight combined with the long historical tradition of winegrowing and making, has allowed the vintners of France to not only hone their skills, but learn from nature to create a product that like the world in which it resides… is very much alive.
Cru	Fifth Growth