The striking, black-purple color lets you know this is going be good. The nose, with its array of black, blue and red fruits, smoke, flowers, and Cuban cigars definitely grabs your attention. But, make no mistake, it is the multi-layered palate, with its opulence, and density that somehow also manages to be equally diaphanous that steals the show. The seamless finish effortlessly glides across your palate for more than 60 seconds! Give this beauty some time in the cellar before popping a cork. With tannins this soft, it is going to be effortless in their youth. Yet, it will age for 3 or more decades with ease. The wine blends 81% Cabernet Sauvignon with 19% Merlot. Tasted twice, this competes with the 100 Pt. 2016. Drink from 2028-2065. Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/search-wine-tasting-notes/?szSearch=2022%20ducru%20beaucaillou

A great, powerful and proportional Ducru with everything in the right place. The aromas and flavors are very precise and beautiful with blackberry, raspberry and citrus undertones. Full-bodied and structured, it has polished electric tannins that are finely layered, well formed and very long. Remains cool on the palate. 82% cabernet sauvignon and 18% merlot. Drink after 2029 but will age beautifully.

Delivers as it did En Primeur, again giving the impression of a carefully constructed, confident and poised wine, that has St Julien typicity, but turned up with Ducru opulence. Muscular, concentrated, packed with graphite, flint, crayon and gunsmoke, alongside juicy and rich fruit, giving contrasting textures that add interest and complexity. A ton of ageing ahead of it. 3.8ph, 95IPT. 100% new oak. 30hl/h yield.

98+ The Grand Vin 2022 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou checks in as 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Merlot that was raised all in new barrels. Its deep ruby/purple/plum hue is followed by an utterly heavenly Saint-Julien that has pure cassis and darker berry fruits, a core of violets, spring flowers, graphite, and spicy oak, full-bodied richness, and ultra-fine, polished tannins. It's as seamless, pure, and elegant as they come, while at the same time being intense, powerful, and concentrated. It reminds me of the 2010 and is going to warrant a decade of cellaring, and have a solid half-century of prime drinking. For the tech geeks out there, the 2022 hit 14% alcohol with a pH of 3.8 and an IPT of 95. It’s an absolute sensational Saint-Julien from this talented team.

(WE 96-98 points) This is a velvet wine on the surface. But its density and concentration are balanced by the superb acidity and perfumed black fruits from the dominant Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine has a seriously long-term future. — Roger Voss

Wonderfully evocative scents on the nose - perfumed and alluring dark berry fruit. Rich and juicy - fully concentrated fruit meets powdery tannins giving a fleshy aspect to the palate. Smooth and supple, slightly chewy fruit give a cushioning before crisp mineral aspects of wet stone, graphite and toasted liquorice come through. Fully flavoured with a long finish. A great wine that delivers the vintage in a stylish way. (Drink between 2030-2050)

This is a blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Merlot, and the élevage was 18 months in 100% new oak. A surprisingly perfumed example of Ducru-Beaucaillou, forgoing the dark intensity of Cabernet Sauvignon I intended to find, instead serving up perfumed currants, mint, verbena and sandalwood. This is followed by a richly polished palate, fine and tense, sinewy rather than muscular, with a powdery vein of tannins that writhes beneath the fruit, slowly pushing through in the middle and finish. The finish presents a huge structure, with a real density here, but all sinew and tendon, with linear tannic structure. Long and sooty, and seething with potential. This will be great, while eschewing the breadth and robust substance that some wines show. This is a change from the Ducru-Beaucaillou of even just six or seven years ago, when I would have expected a style which was darker, more brooding and a touch more muscular. I like it. The alcohol on the label is 14%. - Chris Kissack

The 2022 Ducru-Beaucaillou is a wine of total sensual allure. All the elements are wonderfully woven together. Black cherry, plum, licorice, chocolate, spice and lavender infuse the palate with striking depth. The sustained, persistent finish is a thing of real beauty. Lifted floral accents extend the finish nicely. -- Antonio Galloni

(WA 94-96 points) One of the Médoc's most powerful wines this year is the 2022 Ducru-Beaucaillou, a blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Merlot that opens in the glass with aromas of dark cherries and berries mingled with pencils shavings, vanilla pod and spices. Full-bodied, broad-shouldered and muscular, with a core of ripe but lively fruit underpinned by a chassis of powdery, liberally extracted tannin that asserts itself on the finish, it's a punchy, modern Saint-Julien reminiscent of a hypothetical blend of the 2018 and 2020. - William Kelley