Still looking like a barrel sample, the wine shows off a bouquet of flowers, black plums, smoke, licorice, coffee bean, wet earth and cherry. Full-bodied, rich, silky, velvety, long and frankly, this is just a joy to feel on your palate. The wine is sensuous, opulent and yet, remains focused on the freshness and purity of the fruit at its core. This is stunning in every sense of the word. If you score a bottle, try it within a year or so, else age it for 12 or more years. This is another 1949 in the making! The wine was made from blending 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot and 26% Cabernet Franc. Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/search-wine-tasting-notes/?szSearch=2016+Figeac+

Incredibly deep and complex nose with a slew of black fruit, plus savory and bitter-chocolate notes woven subtly into the extraordinary tapestry of aromas. Titanic concentration, but it still remains so incredibly fresh and poised. Such a pure finish that goes on and on and on. Drinkable now, but best from 2024. Château Quintus vertical tasting. SP.

(WE97-99 points) This aromatic wine is magnificent in its balance and richness. With its high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (38%), it is so typical of this estate. The tannins are velvety while packing a firm punch. Dark and concentrated, it is a great wine for long-term aging.

Damson in colour and aromatics, this is reserved but not subdued at 6 years old, not yet ready to be drunk but showcasing already the ripe texture and layers of powerful blackcurrant pastille, blackberry and bilberry fruits. The minerality and salinity is striking also with touches of mandarin peel, cigar box, espresso, lemongrass even - pulses of fresher acidity that give poise and lift. Clearly exceptional, muscled and concentrated. 100% new oak.

(98+points) Another brilliant wine from the genius of Frédéric Faye, the 2016 Château Figeac checks in as 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc that spent 19 months in new French oak. Roughly 75% of the production made it into the grand vin. This deeply colored beauty is a legendary wine in the making and offers ultra-pure aromas and flavors of crème de cassis, smoke tobacco, dried herbs, chocolate, truffle, and graphite. Showing more violets notes with time in the glass, it builds incrementally on the palate, with flawless balance as well as incredible elegance, no hard edges, and a finish that won't quit. Readers will have a blast comparing the 2016 and 2015 vintages over the coming 3-4 decades and this estate is firing on all cylinders. This will most likely merit a triple-digit rating in 7-8 years and keep for 4 decades or more.

The 2016 Figeac has another dimension aromatically, compared to the previous vintage. A cornucopia of aromas, red and black fruit, cedar, pencil shavings, truffle and a subtle marine scent that becomes more prominent with aeration. The palate is framed by chiseled tannins, the acidity is finely tuned, the fruit shimmers with tension and nascent vivacity. You can’t help but swallow this Figeac, and so I must apologize to the spittoon. Pixelated from A-to-Z, it will be thrilling to watch this mature. Tasted at the château. -- Neal Martin

This is strikingly intense on the nose, with exquisite and perfumed blackcurrant fruit that is clear and pure. The attack is fresh and highly concentrated, though not to excess, and the sílky palate is marked by its zest, energy and great precision. The tannins are polished and the finish very long, with exemplary balance. A classic St-Emilion with a great future.

97+ The 2016 Figeac is comprised of 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot and 26% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, the nose is a little broody and reticent at this very youthful stage, slowly unfolding to reveal profound plum preserves, crème de cassis, black raspberries and star anise with hints of moss-covered bark, truffles and tilled loam plus a waft of red currants and raspberry leaves sparks. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is practically quivering with energy, offering glimpses at tightly wound black fruit and mineral/ferrous layers, framed by very firm, ripe tannins and wonderful tension, finishing long with the spices coming through. This will need a good 7-8 years to come round and then should cellar for 40+ years. Very serious, beautifully poised and sophisticated personality this vintage. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown

19/20 Lively and very Figeac. Just as it should be. Zesty and confident and of the place. Rich palate entry and then lovely freshness. Firm and glorious. Like an arrow. Very pure. Frédéric Faye and the Manoncourt family should be very proud. Classic. Racy and juicy and beautifully balanced. Long.

A gutsy, fully endowed wine, brimming with dark currant, warm fig and steeped blackberry notes, as well as waves of smoldering tobacco and warm gravel. Features a serious bass line, but everything works together, while flecks of savory and iron dart in and out. Best from 2025 through 2040. — J.M.