Chateau de Pez of course!
About the Winery …
It is possibly the oldest Bordeaux wine-making estate in the Saint Estéphe appellation, rivaled only by Chateau Calon Segur. The Chat. de Pez estate was created in 1452 by Jean de Briscos and has since passed through many owners with Jean-Claude Rouzaud being the current owner and custodian since 1995. If you are curious about the name, he is best known for the Roederer Champagne, the maker of Champagne Cristal, as well as owning Pichon Comtesse de Lalande in Pauillac, Chateau Bernadotte, and Chateau Haut-Beausejour.
The vineyards are 48% Merlot, 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot planted on gravel, limestone, and clay soils. A 17-meter altitude difference produces excellent drainage for the vines, which are an average of 25 years old. Their average annual production is around 18,500 cases.
Due to substantial investment reflecting the jump in quality, the Chateau has had a string of outstanding vintages from 2014 to the current vintage- 2023.
Chateau de Pez 2021
The 2021 vintage is a blend of 51 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 43 % Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 3 % Petit Verdot.
Expressive aromas of ripe red cherries, wildflowers, plums, blueberries, and spices.
The palate is inviting, silky smooth, almost creamy, with enticing ripe dark cherries, blueberries, blackberries, red plums, and dark chocolate dominating with savory/earthy notes, coffee, olives, and spices.
This wine displays impressive depth and complexity with great balance and acidity. Tannins still give a dryish pucker, after all, it is only 6 years old. I anticipate this will soften in the coming years, 2 -3 hours of decanting in the meantime. This was impressive drinking day 2 with just the cork back in the bottle.
This will cellar out to 2035 nicely with marked anticipated improvements.
Winery recommends the following pairings: veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes as well as mushrooms, pasta, and cheese. Chateau de Pez is also quite good with Asian dishes, and hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta.
Wine Enthusiast gave this 94 Pt rating.
Vine to Table 