The 2017 Pontet-Canet is a beautifully elegant wine, with a deep garnet-purple color and a nose brimming with floral and fruit notes. Expect fragrances of rosehip tea, lilacs, cinnamon, cloves, and underbrush, complemented by ripe plums, red and black currants, and a touch of pencil shavings. On the palate, it offers a minerally freshness with plush tannins that provide a smooth texture, leading to a long, fragrant finish. The wine was aged in a mix of new oak barrels and amphorae, bringing a unique, fresh character. Critics have praised its purity, with some noting its youthful complexity and aging potential. It's certainly a wine to hold for a few more years before it fully opens up.

The Wine Advocate | RP 96
Published: Mar 16, 2020
Drink: 2021-2048

Composed of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, the medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2017 Pontet-Canet gives up beautifully fragrant notes of rosehip tea, lilacs, cinnamon stick, cloves, dried leaves and underbrush with a core of kirsch, raspberry coulis, warm plums and red and black currants plus a waft of pencil shavings. Medium-bodied, the palate is refreshing, minerally and wonderfully elegant with a well-played texture of approachable, plush tannins and a long, fragrant finish. Beautiful. Aging took place in 50% new and 15% in second fill barrels and the remaining 35% in amphorae for 16 months, much of the material for which came from the soil at Pontet-Canet! 

Jamessuckling.com | JS 96
Published: Dec 14, 2019

This has ethereal transparency to it with a fresh, red-berry and cherry nose. Terra-cotta and dried-flower notes. Plums, too. Quite complex. The palate has a very detailed tannin texture with attractive cassis and blueberries that hold very long, fresh and pure. Fruity and fresh. Try from 2023.

Decanter | D 93
Published: Sep 17, 2021
Drink: 2025-2045

Compared to the flamboyant 2018 and the fantastic 2016, this comes in a lower gear, with less potential complexity. I like the ripe cassis, red and black berry aromatics with a lovely tannic finesse, but I wanted more palate density here. Medium finish. Aged 50% new oak , 35% amphora.

Jancisrobinson.com | JR 17+
Published: Aug 28, 2023
Drink: 2025-2036

Tasted blind. Crimson with some shading at the rim. Warm and very obviously ripe. Tightly reined-in with marked tannins. Quite sophisticated with savoury subtlety. Youthful. Definitely red bordeaux.

Pontet-canet.com

Although rainfall has been a distinctive feature of most recent Bordeaux vintages ending in “ 7 ”, 2017 was marked by frost on a freezing night in late April. Fortunately, the Gironde estuary protected the vineyards of the prestigious Medoc appellations. As a result, our losses were minimal.
Very favourable weather for the vines then set in for most of the season: flowering took place in mid-May and the berries had changed colour by July 7th. Despite some light rain in September, the grapes stayed perfectly healthy until they had reached optimum maturity. The harvest started on September 18th for the Merlot, followed ten days later by the Cabernet Sauvignon, then the Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.
Another important feature of the year was the arrival of a new vat house with 32 concrete vats, each containing 40 hectolitres. It is a way for us to get back to the essentials, as vatting and vinification all take place without machines and without noise, using only human hands.

Tasting 2017
The wine is deep, glossy crimson.
The fresh nose reveals an elegant balance of fruity, floral and mineral notes.
Great harmony is found on the palate between a highly refined tannic structure and comforting depth and length.
A very fine wine indeed.

Harvest: from September 18th to October 4th
Grape varieties: 64% Cabernet Sauvignon - 30% Merlot
4% Cabernet Franc - 2% Petit Verdot
Alcohol: 13°