Izak Litwar

Sauternes and Barsac 2025 Vintage: Château Lafaurie Peyraguey: 100% Semillon. Three pickings, yield 12 hl/ha. Huge intensity of aromas on the nose with candied apricot, guava, candied mandarin peel, and heather honey. It is concentrated on the palate with remarkable acidity, flair, and grace. Rich and sophisticated, with great complexity. Sublimely long finish. This is simply a fabulous wine. 97p.

Bordeaux Vintage 2025 / Pessac-Leognan / Château Haut Brion Blanc : 53% Sémillon + 47% Sauvignon Blanc. Great intensity of grapefruit and green apple on the nose. Remarkable acidity, well-poised, vibrant, and sophisticated on the palate. Multilayered. Long, lemony aftertaste. Upper-class quality. 97-98p.

Saint-Émilion vintage 2025: Château Ausone: 65% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. 13.7% alcohol. Cabernet Sauvignon was so excellent that it was included in Grand Vin for the first time since 1995. The wine displays an expressive and fruit-laden nose of wild cherries. There is freshness and tension, richness, a fabulous midpalate, and a long, sensual finish that goes on and on. This wine is very distinguished and seamless. One of the best wines of the vintage, a sure bet. There will be no second wine (Chapelle d’Ausone) in 2025, as all harvested parcels had very high quality and went into Grand Vin. 99-100p.

Bordeaux 2025 Vintage / Pauillac / Château Mouton Rothschild 2025: 98% Cabernet Sauvignon + 2% Merlot. 13.1% alcohol. One of the best visits I experienced during primeur tastings in April 2026. Thanks, Jean-Emmanuel Danjoy! Potent and distinguished. It has a refined nose, offering plenty of blackcurrants and violets, spiced with notes of tobacco and leather. Exuberant, rich, and creamy on the palate with great structure, complexity, depth, and length. Vibrant, sophisticated, and with excellent mid-palate. This is definitely one of my top picks from the vintage. A future classic, for sure! 99-100p.

Bordeaux 2025 Vintage / Pomerol / Château Trotanoy 2025: 96% Merlot + 4% Cabernet Franc. Tiny yield of 15 hl/ha! What a wine! Everything is fabulous. It’s extraordinarily fragrant and intense on the nose, with wild cherries, blueberries, and blackberries; it's massive on the palate, with an iron-strong backbone, a stupendous midpalate, and a mesmerizingly long finish. It’s not too much, and the wine keeps its balance effortlessly. It’s like there is an extra layer of everything compared to recent vintages. I am speechless! This wine has at least 50 years of life. 100p.

Bordeaux 2024 Vintage / Pauillac / 2024 Lynch Bages: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot, and 3% Cabernet Franc. Tasted twice with the same impression. Freshness, red berries, violets. Delightfully fruity with finesse and elegance, fine complexity, mid-palate, structure, and aftertaste. Beautiful wine. 94p. Tasted in April 2025. 2028 to 2042.

Pomerol 2024/ Lafleur: 52% Cabernet Franc + 48% Merlot. Sometimes, this property shows its darker and unfriendly side, which happened on a rather cold Wednesday afternoon. The wine was oaky, closed, and reluctant to open up. I've no doubt there is great potential in it, and I’m looking forward to retasting it with a possible score upgrade. I give 94+p on credit. Tasted in April 2025.  2028 to 2042.

Bordeaux 2024 Whites + Sauternes: Château Haut Brion Blanc 2024: 56.1% Semillon + 43.9% Sauvignon Blanc. Great intensity of green apple, pear, and pineapple, acidity, crispiness, structure, and length. Vibrant. Long lemony aftertaste. Sheer class. 98+p.Tasted in April 2025. 2028 to 2042.

So, how is the Bordeaux 2024 red vintage? It is better than I expected. Regarding weather challenges, it is similar to 2013, but 2024 was saved by modern technology, the dry and sunny month of August, and a long ripening process. Adjectives such as fresh, elegant, delicate, lively, gentle, and silky characterize most wines. Many wines, especially from properties that couldn't afford treatment costs against mildew, etc., deviate from this description by being over-extracted, green, unripe, and showing dry flavors. In my view, the Right Bank slightly outperforms the Left Bank in terms of wine quality.