(96-97 points) Voluptuous dark fruit, cedar and a touch of tar on the nose. Medium- to full-bodied with an expressive yet concentrated profile, a precise structure and fine-grained, high quality tannins. Chiseled and balanced.

(95-97 points) Flowers, licorice, cherries, smoke, mocha, currants, cedar, and tobacco fill the aromatic profile. The palate is medium-bodied, energetic, soft, polished, and refined. There is good concentration. Texturally, the wine feels elegant on your palate. There is freshness, giving the wine a vibrancy, making it effortless to drink. The sweetness in the fruits, paired with spice, mocha, espresso, and crushed stones, tastes and feels great. The finish starts off strong and keeps on going. 2025 is clearly in competition as one of the best vintages ever produced at Branaire Ducru. The purity here truly makes an impression. You can enjoy this with pleasure quite early in its life and count on at least 20 more years of enjoyment. The wine blends 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 6% Petit Verdot. 13% ABV. The harvest took place September 4 - September 22, making this the earliest end to a harvest in the history of the estate. Yields 33 hectoliters per hectare. Drink from 2029-2060. Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/wine-tasting-note/?vintage=2025&wine=Chateau%20Branaire-Ducru

(94-97+ points) Smooth and elegant. Very well defined and fine with velvety, precise, jammy fruit. This is a well made Branaiere Ducru. It has loads of precise, fresh fruits and is a success for the château that will be interesting to follow.

(94-96+ points) Deep purple-hued, the 2025 Château Branaire-Ducru is a gorgeous Saint-Julien based on 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot, and 6% Cabernet Franc that's still resting in 62% new French oak. Harvested between September 4th and the 22nd, it has a perfumed nose of darker black and blue fruits intermixed with loads of leafy tobacco, smoky herbs, flowers, and spice, with a kiss of Pauillac-like graphite. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied with wonderfully integrated oak, beautifully polished tannins, and a supple, charming, round, and velvety style that's already hard to resist. It checks in at 13% alcohol with a pH of 3.65, and this is a seriously impressive barrel sample.

(94-96 points) The 2025 Branaire-Ducru is a compelling wine in the making, revealing an open, refined bouquet of cassis, mulberries, spices, flowers and pencil lead, with its new oak largely remaining in the background. Medium- to full-bodied, it’s sapid and perfumed, built around a seamless, layered core of fruit framed by finely grained, velvety tannins and concluding with a long, fresh and precise finish. Matured in 65% new oak, this blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot and 6% Cabernet Franc captures the estate’s signature style—polished, balanced and texturally refined—while clearly reflecting the brightness and freshness of the vintage.

(94-96 points) The 2025 Branaire-Ducru is a powerful wine with a darker fruit profile than most years. Dark blue/purplish fruit, lavender, cloves and licorice open first. Floral overtones and brisk acids reappear to perk up the close. A clean, vibrant finish rounds things out in style. This is such a gorgeous and expressive wine. The 2025 is quite simply a fabulous Branaire. Tasted two times. - Antonio Galloni

Blackcurrant, raspberry leaf, liquorice and wet stones on the nose. Smooth and supple with nice clarity. A little tight at the moment but great clarity and purity with blueberries and wet stones. So much minerality. Succulent and mouthwatering, this is generosity and friendliness in a glass built on a really crushed stone mineral base. 3.65pH. A yield of 33hl/ha. 6% Petit Verdot completes the blend.

(91-93 points) Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2025 Branaire-Ducru is a little closed at first, needing some shaking to get beyond the cedar and sassafras notes to a core of black cherries and juicy black currants, followed by hints of licorice and tar. The medium-bodied palate delivers a chewy texture and refreshing acidity with plenty of spicy black fruit flavors, finishing a little woody.