Chateau Ormes de Pez 2015

The core of dark plum and red currant fruit has modest intensity, draped with tobacco, wet earth and bay leaf notes. Taut, showing a paving stone accent on the finish, where the fruit doesn't quite push all the way through. Best from 2020 through 2027.

Good crunchy fruit that is more polished than in the past. A classic, harmonious and modern wine.

What a lovely nose! The blackberry, smoke and earthy notes are beautifully interwoven — then there’s an equally impressive harmony of full, plush tannins and some real concentration. Needs until 2020 to give its best, but it's got many years ahead of it beyond that.

Tasted blind. Rather tired nose. Tough and austere. Very tart. (JR)

The 2015 Ormes de Pez is impeccable. Dark, pliant and inviting, the 2015 has much to recommend it. Smoke, graphite, licorice, lavender, herb and licorice nuances add complexity to this dark, virile Saint-Estèphe. All the elements are very nicely balanced. I would prefer to drink the 2015 over the next decade or so. I suspect the tannins will always remain a bit chunky, but the 2015 has so much to recommend it.

Between medium-bodied and light, there is a distinctive leafy and herbal note to the crisp red fruits, espresso, and dusty tannins on the finish.

Deep purple, dense at the core, with garnet highlights at the rim. Intense bouquet, Damassine plums, perfumed, showing pronounced roasted nuances. On the palate, peppery notes and subtle hints of tobacco; still a touch rough-edged, but with good potential.

(44% Cabernet Sauvignon, 49% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot) Sweet, opulent, powerful bouquet of black berries, mocha cream, cassis cream, vanilla, licorice. Medium-bodied, fresh palate with sweet fruit, fine tannins, a plush structure, and a rich, sweet finish. 17/20 2023 - 2035

On the opening, the fruit matches the bright red-cherry colour: crunchy and fresh, with texture added by slate-scrape tannins and deeper brambled hedgerow blackberry and bilberry. A little short on the finish; I would look to the 2016 vintage of this exceptionally enjoyable wine — but this is juicy and ready to go, with the unfussy, earthy edge of St Estèphe. 45% new oak for ageing.

A blend of 49% Merlot, 44% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot, the 2015 Ormes de Pez is medium to deep garnet in color. It delivers faint notes of smoked meats, cast iron pan, truffles, and cigar box, with a barely remaining waft of prunes. Medium-bodied, while on the skeletal side, the palate is savory-laced and refreshing with chewy tannins and a lifted finish.

With a lovely mouthfeel and sensuality, the 2015 is already delicious today. A silky wine with impressive density.

The colour is violet with a spicy, liquorice-scented nose. The wine is supple, light, elegant, fresh, and gently extracted. Gourmet and round, it can be enjoyed sooner than usual. 44% Cabernet Sauvignon, 49% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot.

The nose is fruity and indulgent, offering a certain richness. It reveals delicate notes of butter and blackberry, paired with a touch of small berries and subtle sweet spice notes. The palate is fruity, generous, mineral and refined, with a relatively fleshy texture, a light acidic backbone and a certain richness/concentration. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of blackberry, Quetsch plum flesh and delicate hints of small red berries, alongside a touch of toast, sweet spices and a discreet note of Zan. The tannins are fine and elegant. Good length with lingering fruit.

Deep purple, dense at the core, with garnet highlights at the rim. Intense bouquet of damson plums, perfumed, showing distinct roasted nuances. On the palate, peppery notes and fine hints of tobacco; still a bit rough-edged, but with good potential. Can develop further.

This property, owned by the Cazes family of Lynch-Bages in Pauillac, has produced a structured wine. Its tannins show most strongly at the moment. Sustained by black-currant fruit, they will keep the wine firm although with a rich, generous style in the future. Drink from 2025.