2022 Ch Brane Cantenac 2ème Cru, Margaux

A long and very linear red for Margaux with intense freshness and energy. The cabernet sauvignon shows real clarity with blackcurrants and flowers. Crushed stone. Firm and racy with lots of lemon rind and intensity. 74% cabernet sauvignon, 23% merlot, 1% cabernet franc, 1% petit verdot and 1% carmenere.

96-97 points jamessuckling.com

A blend of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and the balance Cabernet Franc, Carmenère and Petit Verdot, the 2022 Brane-Cantenac unwinds in the glass with aromas of dark berries, crème de cassis, black truffles, loamy soil, burning embers and violets. Medium to full-bodied, deep and velvety, with a fleshy core of fruit, terrific concentration and lively acids, it concludes with a long, perfumed finish. This is a terrific 2022 that may rival or even surpass the 2019 if it realizes all its potential in bottle.

95-97 points WK robertparker.com

I was absolutely blown away by the 2022 Château Brane-Cantenac, which looks to be a reference point vintage for this château. Based on 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc, Carmenère, and Petit Verdot, it sports a deep purple hue to go with incredible aromatics of crème de cassis, lead pencil, sandalwood, and spring flowers. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it shines for its purity of fruit, has ultra-fine tannins, a great mid-palate, and one heck of a finish. It hit 14.3% alcohol with a pH of 3.6, and like many estates today, they utilized quite a bit of press wine (15%) in the final blend. This is clearly up with the finest wines from the appellation and is well worth seeking out.

96-98 points jebdunnuck.com

A blend of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot, the 2022 Brane-Cantenac has a pH of 3.61 and there is 15.8% press wine in the blend. It has a deep garnet-purple color and it is a little subdued to start with notes of cedar chest and redcurrant preserves leading the charge, soon giving way to a profound core of crème de cassis, juicy black plums, and candied violets, with a touch of iron ore. The medium to full-bodied palate is simply electric, shimmering with bright, energetic black and red berry layers, supported by super-ripe, finely grained tannins and amazing tension, finishing long and perfumed. Stunning!

“We are very happy with our 2022,” said proprietor Henri Lurton. “For us, this is our top. The very best Cabernet Sauvignon from the plateau comes from the very old vines. These vines are 50 to 60 years old. My father planted them after the big frost, and we've been able to keep them. Some of the younger vines did very well too. The quality of the tannins and the balance from here is something we didn't expect. We didn't de-leaf and so we had more shade for the vines, but it is a combination of things that led to this ripeness and freshness. On terrace four, we have clay far down and the vines have dug deep to find this. We know this because have dug deep into or terroir and seen this. There's a lot of moisture down there. This year, we were able to take a whole month to pick and we were able to select. We passed three times through the vineyard. Our yield was 31 hl/ha. It's not so good, but it's average for Margaux this year.”

A magnificent achievement for Brane-Cantenac this year—bravo!

95-97+ points LPB thewineindependent.com

Still characterized by the wood, but with a lot of depth and great complexity, this brane shows itself on the nose, wonderfully fragrant, black currants dominate, violets, cherry blossoms, wonderful. Stunning freshness on the palate, sensational structure, grandiose balance, everything is in its place here, the crisp fruit, the super-fine tannins, that's big, very big.

98-99 points AvV vvwine.ch

One of the standouts of the year - a wonderful wine with so much to like. Coffee, tobacco, liquorice, dark chocolate, blackcurrants and floral scents on the nose. Smooth, succulent and velvety, this is amazing, juicy and so bright and vibrant. Pure and so effortless, tannins are filling but fine and delicate and this has excellent clarity and purity of fruit. They really didn't try too hard but have still delivered a powerful wine with concentration and intensity yet brightness and such generosity of fruit and acidity which makes this so joyful. Simply wonderful. Harvest 7 September-10 October. Yield of 31.5hl/ha. 3.61pH. 1% Petit Verdot and 1% Carmenere complete the blend. 42% production. 15.8% press wine. Ageing 18 months, 100% new oak. 3.57pH.

98 points GH decanter.com