Château Ducru-Beaucaillou 2023
St-Julien 2ème Grand Cru Classé
Bordeaux, France
Regular price£744.00
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Arriving: Spring 2026
Shipping duty paid to Mainland UK is charged at a flat rate of £9.99 per consignment and POA for Northern Ireland or Islands.
Shipping under bond is dependant on location, but starts at £15 per consignment.
| Style: Red | Packaging: OWC |
| ABV: % | Closure: Cork |
| Organic: | Drink from: 2035 |
| Biodynamic: | Drink to: 2055 |
| Grapes: | |
Critic scores
94-96 NM, 98+ AG, 97 JS, 97 JA
Critic reviews
"The 2023 Alter Ego, bottled late July, takes a few swirls of the glass to cohere, but offers quite enticing scents of blueberry, violet, blood orange and vanilla. Very fine delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with sweet black cherries and blackcurrant laced with black pepper. Gentle grip with just a touch of bitterness that lends tension. This sample was decanted, which I feel benefited its showing."
Neal Martin, February 2055, Vinous.com
"The 2023 Ducru-Beaucaillou is a jewel of wine. Soaring aromatics are immediately captivating. A rush of red/purplish fruit, mocha, new leather and well-judged oak build as the 2023 shows off its vertical structure and total class. There's plenty of Ducru opulence, but everything is in the right place. I must admit, I like the lower-alcohol vintages at Ducru quite a bit, as there is less oak extraction, which in turn yields wines of exquisite finesse and class. A highlight."
Antonio Galloni, March 2026, Vinous.com
"Extremely perfumed, with violets, lavender, black currants, blueberries and light orange peel. Hints of lead pencil. It's medium-bodied and so poised, showing ultrafine, polished tannins. Seductive and caressing, with a long, seamless finish. A blend of 85% cabernet sauvignon and 15% merlot. So delicious now but better after 2018. Drink or hold."
James Suckling, January 2026, JamesSuckling.com
"As to the Grand Vin, the 2023 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou brings everything up a level, offering a gorgeous perfume of crème de cassis, spring flowers, graphite, and crushed stone. This gives way to a medium to full-bodied, pure, incredibly elegant Ducru that has ample mid-palate depth, building tannins, and a great spine of acidity. It’s another gorgeous wine from this chateau that plays in the style of the 2010, 2016, and 2020. The 2023 is 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot, again in new barrels, and it hit 13% alcohol, a pH of 3.7, and an IPT of 89. It will have 50+ years of longevity."
Jeb Dunnuck, May 2024, JebDunnuck.com
"Just love how this feels old school in the most contemporary way - meaning this has so much tannic power and architecture, alongside oyster shell salinity, a lot of palate presence and concentration, just a well defined, fabulous wine that you will be thrilled to sink into after a few more years in bottle. 41hl/h yield, 100% new oak, Bruno Borie owner, harvest September 8 to October 3."
Jane Anson, March 2026, JaneAnson.com
"Lovely vibrant purple colour in the glass. Smells fragrant and lifted, a combination of sweet and ripe and fresh blackcurrant and black cherries on the nose with a touch of dark chocolate. Smooth and so silky, but rich too, there’s depth and weight but not too much. I love the texture - grippy and filling no doubt, it coats the mouth with a crushed velvet texture, you feel the ripeness but there’s such lift and effortless purity of fruit that it feels fresh too. No extra fat, but equally it’s not too lean, not strict at all, where many are. Not hollow, not light, there’s no let up. Juicy cherry, blackcurrant and blueberry with lots of liquorice on the finish. Feels well crafted. Maybe not as immediately moreish as some, but this is really well made. Feels elegant and stylish.7pH. 89 IPT. Ageing 18 months, 100% new oak. 12% press."
Georgina Hindle, May 2014, Decanter.com
Neal Martin, February 2055, Vinous.com
"The 2023 Ducru-Beaucaillou is a jewel of wine. Soaring aromatics are immediately captivating. A rush of red/purplish fruit, mocha, new leather and well-judged oak build as the 2023 shows off its vertical structure and total class. There's plenty of Ducru opulence, but everything is in the right place. I must admit, I like the lower-alcohol vintages at Ducru quite a bit, as there is less oak extraction, which in turn yields wines of exquisite finesse and class. A highlight."
Antonio Galloni, March 2026, Vinous.com
"Extremely perfumed, with violets, lavender, black currants, blueberries and light orange peel. Hints of lead pencil. It's medium-bodied and so poised, showing ultrafine, polished tannins. Seductive and caressing, with a long, seamless finish. A blend of 85% cabernet sauvignon and 15% merlot. So delicious now but better after 2018. Drink or hold."
James Suckling, January 2026, JamesSuckling.com
"As to the Grand Vin, the 2023 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou brings everything up a level, offering a gorgeous perfume of crème de cassis, spring flowers, graphite, and crushed stone. This gives way to a medium to full-bodied, pure, incredibly elegant Ducru that has ample mid-palate depth, building tannins, and a great spine of acidity. It’s another gorgeous wine from this chateau that plays in the style of the 2010, 2016, and 2020. The 2023 is 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot, again in new barrels, and it hit 13% alcohol, a pH of 3.7, and an IPT of 89. It will have 50+ years of longevity."
Jeb Dunnuck, May 2024, JebDunnuck.com
"Just love how this feels old school in the most contemporary way - meaning this has so much tannic power and architecture, alongside oyster shell salinity, a lot of palate presence and concentration, just a well defined, fabulous wine that you will be thrilled to sink into after a few more years in bottle. 41hl/h yield, 100% new oak, Bruno Borie owner, harvest September 8 to October 3."
Jane Anson, March 2026, JaneAnson.com
"Lovely vibrant purple colour in the glass. Smells fragrant and lifted, a combination of sweet and ripe and fresh blackcurrant and black cherries on the nose with a touch of dark chocolate. Smooth and so silky, but rich too, there’s depth and weight but not too much. I love the texture - grippy and filling no doubt, it coats the mouth with a crushed velvet texture, you feel the ripeness but there’s such lift and effortless purity of fruit that it feels fresh too. No extra fat, but equally it’s not too lean, not strict at all, where many are. Not hollow, not light, there’s no let up. Juicy cherry, blackcurrant and blueberry with lots of liquorice on the finish. Feels well crafted. Maybe not as immediately moreish as some, but this is really well made. Feels elegant and stylish.7pH. 89 IPT. Ageing 18 months, 100% new oak. 12% press."
Georgina Hindle, May 2014, Decanter.com