Château Branaire-Ducru 2025
St-Julien 4ème Grand Cru Classé
Bordeaux, France
Regular price£186.00
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Arriving: Mid 2028
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: 13.0% | Closure: Cork |
| Organic: | Drink from: 2032 |
| Biodynamic: | Drink to: 2055 |
| Grapes: 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot, 6% Cabernet Franc | |
Critic scores
94-96 RP, 93-95 NM, 94-96 AG, 96-97 JS, 94-96 JD, 91-93 LPB, 93 JA, 95 DC, 95-97 JL, 93-95 DB, 94 GM
Critic reviews
"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."
Yohan Castaing, April 2026, RobertParker.com
"The 2025 Branaire-Ducru was cropped at 33 hl/ha, which is not too low in the context of the growing season, but the smallest since 1991. Picking was from September 4 with the early Merlots and finished September 22. The Merlot on clay soils was deemed high quality and therefore comprises a slightly higher percentage of the blend. It is aged in 60% new and 40% one-year-old barrels. This has a flattering bouquet with black plum and strawberry fruit, and a noticeable though agreeable powdered chocolate/mocha note at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied with silky smooth tannins, a fine bead of acidity, and hints of mocha and mint merging with black fruit. The finish is quite linear and understated, keeping within the style of the château. Very classy, this will give a lot of pleasure without too much cellaring. 13.2% alcohol."
Neal Martin, May 2026, Vinous.com
"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, April 2026, Vinous.com
"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."
James Suckling, April 2026, JamesSuckling.com
"Intense, knitted down with grilled cumin and cloves, sappy dark fruits, appellation typicity, an enjoyable enjoyable Brainaire. Yield 33 hl/ha. 60% new oak, François Xavier Maroteaux owner."
Jane Anson, April 2026, JaneAnson.com
"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."
Geogina Hindle, April 2026, Decanter.com
"(Saint-Julien; 62% Cabernet Sauvignon; 26% Merlot; 6% Petit Verdot; 6% Cabernet Franc; a final yield of 33 hl/ha; 13% alcohol; tasted at the UGCB press tasting at the Cité du Vin). Charming, if a little closed aromatically, with a hint of hazelnut and assorted red and darker berry fruits the first to show. There's a hint of iris too. On the palate this is caressing, soft and silky and it unfurls reassuringly slowly. The fruit has a gentle natural sweetness to it. This is an undemonstrative but beautifully balanced wine. Stylish and quite sleek in this vintage. "
Colin Hay, April 2026, DrinksBusiness.com
Yohan Castaing, April 2026, RobertParker.com
"The 2025 Branaire-Ducru was cropped at 33 hl/ha, which is not too low in the context of the growing season, but the smallest since 1991. Picking was from September 4 with the early Merlots and finished September 22. The Merlot on clay soils was deemed high quality and therefore comprises a slightly higher percentage of the blend. It is aged in 60% new and 40% one-year-old barrels. This has a flattering bouquet with black plum and strawberry fruit, and a noticeable though agreeable powdered chocolate/mocha note at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied with silky smooth tannins, a fine bead of acidity, and hints of mocha and mint merging with black fruit. The finish is quite linear and understated, keeping within the style of the château. Very classy, this will give a lot of pleasure without too much cellaring. 13.2% alcohol."
Neal Martin, May 2026, Vinous.com
"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, April 2026, Vinous.com
"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."
James Suckling, April 2026, JamesSuckling.com
"Intense, knitted down with grilled cumin and cloves, sappy dark fruits, appellation typicity, an enjoyable enjoyable Brainaire. Yield 33 hl/ha. 60% new oak, François Xavier Maroteaux owner."
Jane Anson, April 2026, JaneAnson.com
"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."
Geogina Hindle, April 2026, Decanter.com
"(Saint-Julien; 62% Cabernet Sauvignon; 26% Merlot; 6% Petit Verdot; 6% Cabernet Franc; a final yield of 33 hl/ha; 13% alcohol; tasted at the UGCB press tasting at the Cité du Vin). Charming, if a little closed aromatically, with a hint of hazelnut and assorted red and darker berry fruits the first to show. There's a hint of iris too. On the palate this is caressing, soft and silky and it unfurls reassuringly slowly. The fruit has a gentle natural sweetness to it. This is an undemonstrative but beautifully balanced wine. Stylish and quite sleek in this vintage. "
Colin Hay, April 2026, DrinksBusiness.com