Freddy R. Troya

9.3

Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2023 – Pauillac, Grand Cru Classé en 1855, BDX France 🇫🇷

Overview
A benchmark Pauillac delivering depth, precision, and classical balance at a very high level, driven by a 75% Cabernet Sauvignon–dominant blend with 20% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc as a support. The wine shows beautifully layered red fruit, refined structure, and seamless integration, expressing terroir purity and composure from start to finish.

Aromas & Flavors
Blackcurrant, red cherry, wild raspberry, cassis, graphite, cedar, pencil shavings, subtle tobacco leaf, gentle cocoa and crushed gravel.

Mouthfeel
Medium-plus to full-bodied with finely polished tannins, excellent mid-palate density, vibrant yet controlled acidity, elegant grip, and a long, harmonious finish that remains lifted and precise.

Food Pairings
Prime rib, grilled ribeye, rack of lamb, beef Wellington, mushroom-forward dishes, aged hard cheeses.

Verdict
A beautifully executed Pauillac that balances power and finesse effortlessly. Everything feels aligned, fruit purity, structure, tension, and length, making this a top-tier reference for the appellation and vintage.

🍷 Personal Pick
This is Pauillac done right, deep fruit, flawless execution, and a finish that feels complete and satisfying rather than forced. A wine that earns admiration through balance and quiet authority. Hard to pass, even harder to forget. — 14 days ago

Kenneth Borrell

9.1

Smooth , hints of fruit , very long — 2 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.6

A blend of 92% Merlot & 8% Cab Franc, elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé in 2012, deep Ruby with aromas of black fruits, complex spice and notes of forest floor. On the palate flavors blackberry and black cherry with notes of cacao, espresso and licorice. Fine smooth tannins, great mouthfeel, long finish ending with toasty cedar notes and earthy mineral character. Just starting to show beautifully and will for next decade. Nice! — 3 years ago

Bestpolar

10

Absolutely fantastic Millennium Prelude Grand Puy Ducasse 2000 Pauillac limited edition numbered bottles (this is 1102).
Came from a known French cellar during COVID lockdown.
Main wine for Christmas 🎄 2025 in Richmond with family, Wups and a new retriever puppy, Snowy.
Incredible claret. — a month ago

GaryWEdwards

9.6

Wow! Like most of Burgundy, only a quality somm would have directed me here and my lack of knowledge but trust in a pro reaped huge dividends. Unfolding pretty quickly in the glass and only improved through the courses at Alain Ducasse London. No other experience in London comes close. — 8 months ago

Shay A

9.4

One of the better older Bordeaux I’ve had in quite some time. Absolutely at peak with so many layers. It outshined an ‘03 Grand Puy Lacoste (which showed thin), ‘03 Montelena (sadly corked), and an ‘03 BV Georges de LaTour (rich/sweet).

Absolutely on fire from pop, this 20yr old left bank Bordeaux showed none of the overripe/too hot characteristics of the vintage. Deep purple/black in the glass with no bricking. Full-bodied. Mocha, truffle, roasted blackberries and raspberries, graphite on the nose. Ripe (but not overly so) dark berries, plum, cassis with vanilla pipe tobacco and even some iron. Still a good bit of tannin on the finish. This shows as a “modern” style due to the warmth, but balanced. Wish I had more. Pop the corks and enjoy! — 3 years ago

Mark S.

9.1

Deep cherry red. Black currant berry cherry dried plum. Still fruity. Fruitiness M+ Sweetness M Acidity M Tannin M Smooth Body M++ Finish M+ Concentrated Robust need to decant for hours. Château Grand-Puy Ducasse 01 @, , 251219 — 2 months ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.4

Gorgeous! Incredibly fresh with youthful vigor and classic Paulliac aromatic layers and a rich and concentrated palate with grippy tannins still! This one calls for a nice juicy steak! — 3 months ago

Stefan Dolhain

9.8

2019 vintage. Calicem might well be Saint-Emilion's best kept secret. Tasted it several times and was always blown away. This time I tasted it alongside the extraordinary Larcis Ducasse 2019, which proves my point that Calicem is definitely of Premier Grand Cru quality ( in case the classification is still a thing after Cheval Blanc, Ausone and a few others left). — 2 years ago

Boris Mathiszik

9.0

Leather and gravel when I first opened this bottle, and after an hour in the decanter this wine brought out a lot of fruit. Long nose. Quite the chameleon, this grand cru. Rating affirmed 3/18/23. — 3 years ago