château branaire ducru 2003

branaire-ducru occupies 60 hectares of deep gravel soils, in 80 or so different parcels, on the plateau of beychevelle. cabernet sauvignon dominates, but plantings of petit verdot on good soils are also a particularity of branaire. when the maroteaux family purchased the estate in 1988, a new winery followed a few years later; and now, another is under construction, which will almost double the number of fermentation vats, permitting more precise parcel-by-parcel vinification (some of these vats, incidentally, were online by the 2021 harvest and are surely part of the reason why branaire has performed so well). winemaking is very classical, and maturation is in around 60% new oak, with three or four traditional rackings. there are no smoke and mirrors at this address, just extremely good, age-worthy saint-julien that's always elegant and impeccably balanced. 72% cabernet sauvignon, 20% merlot, 4.5% petit verdot and 3.5% cabernet franc; 3.75 ph; 13% alcohol): bright ruby-red. intense mocha and sweet spice notes complicate ripe dark cherry and macerated plum aromas on the very ripe, deep nose. large-scaled and plush, with ripe but not cooked red and black fruit flavors. surprisingly lively acidity and seamless tannins give the wine good support. finishes creamy and long, with a repeating note of mocha. for the most part i am not a fan of the 2003 bordeaux owing to the furnace-like summer, but the branaire-ducru is a knockout and owner patrick maroteaux has always told me he thinks it's one of the best wines he has ever made. not surprisingly in 2003, the grapes were harvested much earlier and faster than usual, between september 9 and 24.