Andrew Jefford | Deep, dark black-red. Earth, chocolate, and coal balance out blackcurrant and the freshness of the copse after a spring shower in this unusually fragrant, lively, aromatically graceful Pape Clément. The palate, by contrast, has more wealth and evident richness than most of its Pessac-Léognan peers, including its fellow urbanite Carmes, and the ripeness is very satisfactory: full yet fresh. There’s a finish of moderate tenacity (it’s a little spongy in the middle), and this is a Pape Clement that will be ready soon—but it will provide much pleasure right from the off, thanks to that generosity of contour and line. 2018–24. | 90

Michael Schuster | Dense, lightly gravelly, ripe-blackcurrant fruited nose; rich mid-weight wine, fresh in acidity, finely dry in tannin, very nicely balanced in a slightly more muscular style; abundant in fruit to taste, long across the palate, sweetly ripe, generous, and satisfying; fleshy, firmly framed, a fairly long-term balance, with excellent fruit- cored persistence of aftertaste. Needs time, of course, but complete and satisfying, in a very different style from Haut-Bailly, for example. 2025–40+. | 92