2019 Château Les Ormes-de-Pez

The 2019 Ormes de Pez has a more Merlot-driven bouquet (54% of the blend), a little fleshier than its peers, quite pure with raspberry and cranberry scents. Fine delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with a sapid entry, good depth, though it does not deliver the precision of the Dame de Montrose and feels more muscular towards the finish. Yet that should see it age well over the next couple of decades. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.

- Neal Martin (01/2023)

This shows lots of spice, such as cloves and nutmeg, together with dark berries and cherries and some plums. It’s structured and relatively dense, with lovely length and beauty. Needs time to open and come together. 50% merlot, 40% cabernet sauvignon with cabernet franc and petit verdot. Lovely now. Try after 2024. (02/2022)

Coming from the Cazes team, the 2019 Château Ormes De Pez is gorgeous and shines in the vintage. Pure crème de cassis, mulberries, leafy herbs, Asian spices, and lead pencil all emerge on the nose, and this medium to full-bodied 2019 has the vintage’s pure, focused, elegant style while staying ripe, supple, and textured. The balance is spot on, and it's going to hit maturity in roughly 8-10 years and have two decades of prime drinking. (04/2022)

The 2019 Ormes de Pez is a blend of 50% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple in color, it rolls out with gregarious scents of redcurrant preserves and blackcurrant cordial leading to hints of violets, dark chocolate, cedar chest, and graphite. The medium to full-bodied palate is elegant and refreshing, with lively red and black berry layers, finishing with a skip in its step. (05/2023)

Offers a delightful mix of dark fruit and fresh flavors, with plum and blackberry notes infused with dark tea, singed cedar and licorice root, all carried by sleek acidity through the finish. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2032.

- J.M.

The 2019 Ormes de Pez exhibits generous aromas of sweet berry fruit, rose petals and pencil shavings, followed by a medium to full-bodied, lively and seamless palate that's bright and integrated, with an elegantly fleshy core of fruit, fine tannins and a saline finish. Produced by the Cazes family of Château Lynch-Bages, this is invariably one of the most charming, friendly wines of Saint-Estèphe.

- William Kelley (04/2022)