2016 Château d’Issan

Description

96  James Suckling
“The brightness and precision already comes through on the nose with floral, blackcurrant character. Full-bodied and very tight and creamy with polished tannins that last for minutes. Warm and intense. Needs four to five years to show all it has, yet already a beauty.” (2/2019)

95  Jane Anson for Decanter
“Beautiful violet and lilac-tinted edging to the colour, a promisng sign of a vibrant, balanced wine, and it absolutely delivers on the palate. This is so fresh and uplifting, it has fruit intensity balanced with a perfumed elegance. Over 80% of the vines at Issan are at least 20 years old, and many much older, so they coped very well with the dry summer. This is a lovely classic Margaux, sculpted with a core of fine tannins that promise excellent ageing. 64% Cabernet Sauvignon and 36% Merlot. Blending was finished in late January with consultant Eric Boissenot.” (4/2017)

94+  Jeb Dunnuck
“I loved the 2016 Château d’Issan and this is a certainly a wine to seek out. Made from a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon and 36% Merlot from yields of 55 hectoliters per hectare, aged 18 months in 50% new oak, it has a beautiful perfume of blue fruits (cassis, blueberries, etc.) as well as hints of graphite, subtle oak, and charcoal. Medium to full-bodied, with integrated acidity, a terrific mid-palate, and perfect balance, it needs 4-5 years of bottle age and is going to cruise in good cellars for 20-25 years or more. It’s a beautiful, elegant, seamless wine that’s very much in the style of the vintage.” (2/2019)

94+  Lisa Perrotti-Brown for Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
“The 2016 D’Issan is blended of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon and 36% Merlot, aged in 50% new and 50% one-year-old French oak for 18 months. Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, it has vibrant black cherries and blackcurrants notes with chocolate mint, beef drippings, black olives and cigar box. Medium-bodied with a well-sustained, intensely flavored mid-palate, it has a rock-solid, grainy frame and long savory finish.” (11/2018)

94  Neal Martin for Vinous
“The 2016 d’Issan, matured in 50% new oak and bottled at the end of May, was impressive out of barrel, and thankfully, it is the same in bottle. The very well defined bouquet features blackberry, tobacco, pressed violets and a subtle estuarine tang, almost a marshland scent of salty air. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannin, good focused and just the right amount of salinity. My feeling is that this Margaux will close up for a while, so cellar it for several years if you can. 13.34% alcohol.” (1/2019)