×

Chateau Branaire Ducru Saint Julien 2005 3.0Ltr

size
3.0Ltr
country
France
region
Bordeaux
appellation
Saint Julien
DC
95
WE
95
VM
94
WA
93
WS
92
DC
95
Rated 95 by Decanter
The nose is just utterly delicious, smoky and seductive. This is why you don't drink St-Julien in a great vintage too young, it has suddenly started to sing and take on all these aromatics dimensions. It's displaying a floral, violet edge, with truffles and leather. The fruit is still there but it has started to be accompanied by an orchestra of other flavours. This is my favourite wine in the series, hands down. Showing so perfectly today. The tannins are still there but they are melted, and the whole thing has just come together. 60% new oak. ... More details
Image of bottle
Sample image only. Please see Item description for product Information. When ordering the item shipped will match the product listing if there are any discrepancies. Do not order solely on the label if you feel it does not match product description

Chateau Branaire Ducru Saint Julien 2005 3.0Ltr

SKU 452379
Sale
$687.00
/3.0Ltr bottle
$618.30
/3.0Ltr bottle
Quantity
* This item is available for online ordering only. It can be picked up or shipped from our location within 4-6 business days. ?
Professional Ratings
DC
95
WE
95
VM
94
WA
93
WS
92
DC
95
Rated 95 by Decanter
The nose is just utterly delicious, smoky and seductive. This is why you don't drink St-Julien in a great vintage too young, it has suddenly started to sing and take on all these aromatics dimensions. It's displaying a floral, violet edge, with truffles and leather. The fruit is still there but it has started to be accompanied by an orchestra of other flavours. This is my favourite wine in the series, hands down. Showing so perfectly today. The tannins are still there but they are melted, and the whole thing has just come together. 60% new oak.
WE
95
Rated 95 by Wine Enthusiast
This is opulent, but with restraint. The fruit is rich, black and delicious. Touches of spice and wood are present, lending complexity to the ripe fruits and balanced tannins. Impressive.
VM
94
Rated 94 by Vinous Media
The 2005 Branaire-Ducru is a vintage tasted many times. It unceasingly offers a ripe bouquet in the context of this Saint-Julien with red berry fruit tinged with cedar and sous-bois. More approachable than its peers, it is an expressive 2005. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, well balanced with a stocky, almost burly cedar-infused finish that is less strict than a few years ago. One of the more approachable 2005 Saint-Juliens, nevertheless I remain convinced that it should plateau for many years. Tasted from a bottle from my private cellar.
WA
93
Rated 93 by Wine Advocate
Floral nuances combined with lots of mulberry, raspberry and sweet blackcurrant fruit are followed by a medium to full-bodied, beautifully pure, textured, complex wine with soft tannin. It should drink well relatively early on (2-3 years) and last 15 or more.
WS
92
Rated 92 by Wine Spectator
Very floral, showing blueberry, licorice and mineral on the nose. Full and very silky, with beautifully polished tannins. Long and caressing. This is always very well done and good value for the quality. Best after 2010.
Product Details
size
3.0Ltr
country
France
region
Bordeaux
appellation
Saint Julien
Overview
The nose is just utterly delicious, smoky and seductive. This is why you don't drink St-Julien in a great vintage too young, it has suddenly started to sing and take on all these aromatics dimensions. It's displaying a floral, violet edge, with truffles and leather. The fruit is still there but it has started to be accompanied by an orchestra of other flavours. This is my favourite wine in the series, hands down. Showing so perfectly today. The tannins are still there but they are melted, and the whole thing has just come together. 60% new oak.
green grapes

Varietal: Red Bordeaux

The Bordeaux method of blending quality grape varietals is something which has long been imitated and envied around the world. Whilst there are six Bordeaux grape varietals allowed for the production of red wine in this region of France – Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Carménere – the most common and widely used combination involves a careful blend of the Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, usually with a small percentage of Petit Verdot to boost the overall flavor and balance things out. This process accentuates the finer points of all these varietals, and takes the astringency of one type whilst rounding it out and mellowing it with the light tannins and fleshiness of another. The results are rarely short of spectacular, and are perfect for oak aging, where the flavorful magic of Bordeaux wine making can really take place, and the complex aromas and characteristics can truly come forward.
barrel

Region: Bordeaux

The wineries of Bordeaux in France are widely considered to be amongst the finest on earth, with many of the chateaux found on the Left Bank and in the Médoc region routinely demanding enormous prices and being snapped up by collectors looking to add the best examples of the world's white and red wines to their cellars. Bordeaux's secret to success comes from the fact that the terroir of the region is exceptionally rich in minerals, helped by the clay and gravel soils which typify the area and the Gironde river which runs through it. Normally humid in climate, the nearby Atlantic coast supplies cooling breezes, making Bordeaux a winemaker's dream and resulting in extremely high quality grape varietals. For hundreds of years, the wineries of Bordeaux have been mastering the art of wine blending, and today produce a wide range of wine styles using many of the sixteen grape varietals permitted to grow in the region by French law.
fields

Country: France

French winemakers are subjected to several laws and regulations regarding the wines they produce, and how they can be labeled and sold. Such procedures are designed to increase the overall quality of the country's produce, and also to ensure that wines made in each particular region or appellation are of a character and type which is representative of the area. Thankfully for consumers of wine world-wide, the French have a particularly high reputation to uphold, and seem to do so flawlessly. Every year, wineries from all over France produce millions upon millions of bottles of fine wine, making the most of their native grape varieties and the excellent terrain which covers most of the country. From the expensive and exquisite red wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy, to the white wines and cremants of central France, the French are dedicated to providing the world with wines of the highest quality and most distinctive character.
Customer Reviews
Customer Reviews

There have been no reviews for this product.

More wines available from Chateau Branaire Ducru
750ml
Bottle: $55.20
Ripe, fresh and decidedly forward in style, with a modestly tarry edge supporting the juicy blackberry, loganberry...
WS
90
750ml
Bottle: $41.37
Lots of chocolate and juicy fruit to this with currant and walnut undertones. Medium body, soft and silky tannins and...
JS
92
WS
90
750ml
Bottle: $33.90
Undoubtedly the best of the three Dulucs, it takes a bit of the best of each of the other two. Fascinating that the...
DC
91
JS
91
Long-term Pre-Arrival
1.5Ltr - 1 Bottle
Bottle: $64.48
More Details
green grapes

Varietal: Red Bordeaux

The Bordeaux method of blending quality grape varietals is something which has long been imitated and envied around the world. Whilst there are six Bordeaux grape varietals allowed for the production of red wine in this region of France – Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Carménere – the most common and widely used combination involves a careful blend of the Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, usually with a small percentage of Petit Verdot to boost the overall flavor and balance things out. This process accentuates the finer points of all these varietals, and takes the astringency of one type whilst rounding it out and mellowing it with the light tannins and fleshiness of another. The results are rarely short of spectacular, and are perfect for oak aging, where the flavorful magic of Bordeaux wine making can really take place, and the complex aromas and characteristics can truly come forward.
barrel

Region: Bordeaux

The wineries of Bordeaux in France are widely considered to be amongst the finest on earth, with many of the chateaux found on the Left Bank and in the Médoc region routinely demanding enormous prices and being snapped up by collectors looking to add the best examples of the world's white and red wines to their cellars. Bordeaux's secret to success comes from the fact that the terroir of the region is exceptionally rich in minerals, helped by the clay and gravel soils which typify the area and the Gironde river which runs through it. Normally humid in climate, the nearby Atlantic coast supplies cooling breezes, making Bordeaux a winemaker's dream and resulting in extremely high quality grape varietals. For hundreds of years, the wineries of Bordeaux have been mastering the art of wine blending, and today produce a wide range of wine styles using many of the sixteen grape varietals permitted to grow in the region by French law.
fields

Country: France

French winemakers are subjected to several laws and regulations regarding the wines they produce, and how they can be labeled and sold. Such procedures are designed to increase the overall quality of the country's produce, and also to ensure that wines made in each particular region or appellation are of a character and type which is representative of the area. Thankfully for consumers of wine world-wide, the French have a particularly high reputation to uphold, and seem to do so flawlessly. Every year, wineries from all over France produce millions upon millions of bottles of fine wine, making the most of their native grape varieties and the excellent terrain which covers most of the country. From the expensive and exquisite red wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy, to the white wines and cremants of central France, the French are dedicated to providing the world with wines of the highest quality and most distinctive character.