Chateau Brane Cantenac 2017 Bordeaux Premium Wine Review - 2nd Growth Wine, Margaux
Updated based on information provided by winery (so some of the information in the video may not be accurate)
Brane Cantenac is a 2nd growth wine from the Margaux region (pronounced "Bran Can ten knack")
The estate became a winery in the early 17th century under the name Domaine Guilhem Hostein. In the 18th century, it was owned by the Gorce family and run under the name Chateau de Gorce. The Baron of Brane purchased the estate in 1833 In order to fund the purchase, he sold his interest in Brane Mouton (which is now the vineyards of Mouton Rothschild). The Baron renamed the winery Brane Cantenac in 1838. Cantenac is the village in Medoc where the vineyard/estate is situated.
Then there was a series of ownership changes. It was owned by the Roy family, who then, in 1922, sold it to the Societe de Grand Crus de France, who then sold it in 1922 to Leonce Racapet and his son in law, Francois Lurton. Lucien Lurton, son of Francois Lurton, inherited the winery in 1956 and it has been in the Lurton family's possession for 4 generations (sorry in the video I got Francois and Lucien mixed up). The winery is now managed by Henri Lurton, son of Lucien Lurton, who inherited it in 1992.
The winery consist of 75 hectares . 30 hectares that are located on the Plateau of Brane, representing the best plots of the estate, is used to produce the first wine. Since 2019, Brane Cantenac has only used the best plots from these 30 hectares to produce the first (grand) wine, further limiting the selection process and increasing the quality of the wine. The winery also produces a 2nd and 3rd wine, which have more Merlot content as well as a white wine. The vineyard is planted with 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 0.5% Petit Verdot and 0.5% Carmenere. Carmenere was first used in their 2011 vintage and Petit Verdot was first used in their 2017 vintage.
Henri Lurton has spearheaded a number of changes at the winery. Among them: the winery is moving towards more organic farming techniques, in 1999, the added smaller vats so that vinification could be done parcel by parcel and in 2015, they completed the renovation of their cellars and vat rooms
About 11, 000 cases of this wine is produced. I do not see a definitive Wine Spectator rating for this wine but their barrel sample rating was 88-91 pts. Robert Parker gave is 92 pts. Price of the wine at BC Liquor stores is $150.00
The 2017 vintage marked the first time they used Petit Verdot in their blend. It was a blend of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The 2017 vintage was completely vinified in oak vats and then aged for 18 months in 70% new French oak barrels and 30% one year old barrels. About 60% of the entire harvest was used to produce this wine and used a higher percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon because of frost issues for the vintage (which affected the grapes used in the 2nd and 3rd wine but spared most of the plots on the Brane plateau used to produce the grand wine).
For more information about the winery, please see their website at www.brane-cantenac.com/
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Пікірлер: 40
Happy New Years loved this review and all the background information pretty crazy he sold what would of been Mouton ! (Only if he knew) haha Also my experience the best wines for aging always firm up and are amazing in 10-20 years but also 2017 vintage could of been apart of that if things are out of balance nothing you can do.
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Wyatt: Happy New Year. This wine confused me a bit. Wouldn't mind drinking a better vintage of this wine as not sure if it is the year or the winery that still hasn't found its place. Attractive price for a 2nd growth but maybe consumers are right...it doesn't deserve a higher price at this time. Best wishes for a spectacular 2022! Cheers!
love brane cantenac, really stept up the plate in the recent years, greetz from the netherlands
@TrophyWineHunter
Жыл бұрын
Adran: thank you for viewing my video and your comment. I think in general, Margaux region wines are underpriced and are experiencing a renaissance in both quality and interest. Please like, subscribe and keep watching. Cheers!
Great review. I've never tried Brane Cantenac but I'll be looking to get a bottle this upcoming year. I'm not the biggest fan of Margaux wines so I'll drink it enough to see how different it is from other Margaux wines.
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Stephen: thank you for your continue support. I think Margaux is having a renaissance. Their wines are getting slightly heavier and the modern palate is getting a bit more softer/refined so this bodes well for Margaux as a region. I think you will find good value in this region over the next 10 years. 2nd growth wine priced at 3rd or 4th growth level so only was to go is up. Cheers!
Great video! I was curious if you, as a bdx lover, have any opinions on Chateau Musar?
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Musar: I actually like it a lot although not sure if the quality has been kept up in recent years. Cheers!
This video felt very close to me because I love 2017s and have tried a fair few second growths at this level. Fundamentally, I agree with your views here. I'll add, and I hope we can discuss this: the greatness of a 2017 is opening, smelling the changes over the first 15 minutes, then slowly finishing the bottle over the next three hours - that's the joy of well crafted 2017s for me. Of the second growths, very recently, I can comment on a few to open a discussion: Rauzan Gassies 2017 tastes like a mid-tier 4th growth, to me, and I wouldn't buy it again at the pricepoint; Leoville Poyferre tastes like a lower-tier third growth to me and I wouldn't buy it again at the pricepoint - perhaps 88 or 89 point wines? Neither are in the top ten of 2017s I've tasted at this pricepoint - they both had pleasant elements (so they are quality wines); Montrose 2017 is leagues above and for me is a 96 point wine, a top--tier second growth 2017 wine; The Cos D'Estournal, any vintage, is one of my favourite wines, and the 2017 is amazing from opening to end of bottle - for me, a 98 point wine (which must be one of the nest for a 2017 wine; I'm not alone RP and JS scored it 98) - I really love the 2017 Cos D'Estournal as a young, fresh, velvety, balanced wine with depth and aristocracy (it's an amazing wine at a great price, imho). So, we get to the Brane Cantenac 2017 which is a wine I've been avoiding at the pricepoint for a while... Today, after watching your video, I went to the Galeria in Daejeon, Korean and bought a 2017 bottle for US$90 which I thought was reasonable for a second growth, but to give it a good test I also bought a 2017 Lafon-Rochet (I admit I much prefer most St Estephe's to most Margaux wines) to test them head to head, as well as with the other second growths I've mentioned. Impression 1: I was impressed with the Brane-Cantenac because it tasted like a well made second growth wine. It is heavy with dark berries, it opened up after 20 minutes and continued to drink well - I'd rate it right in the middle of my second growth 2017s (nowhere near a Cos D'Estournal, but considerably more enjoyable than a Rauzen Gassies) thus I might give this wine a 91 although within an hour the tannins grew, it was unbalanced and did not improie thereafter, imho, so you lose a lot of enjoyment. I feel the quality and I feel the limitation. I'd buy it again at the right price (I suggest US$70-80). In the same time period, the 4th growth 2017 Lafon-Rochet started off similar to the Brane-Centenac (perhaps superior to the nose, but bland to the palate) then refused to grow for the next hour; hmmm, average. But, as is my experience with this wine, it grows and grows with much air - surprisingly and unusually, this is true of the 2017 Lafon-Rochet too. At US$64, it's your choice, do you want to wait or would you prefer to pay $20 more and a drink better in the first hour? I consider, L-R, if given a lot of air, to be an excellent 4th growth. But, for similar money, the 2017 Chateau Clinet (and I don't particularly love Pomerol wines) is smooth, velvety, high quality and with very limited depth that gets you drinking the bottle like cherry juice. TW the 2016 Lafon-Rochet, if you can get it, and allow it to breath over two days, is amazing value. For a 2017, imho, for the pricepoint, you cannot beat, at US$140, the Cos D'Estournal (98+ points by parker) - but, what do I know. Please add your thoughts... :) &, yes, at the right price, given very little air and drank quickly, this Chateau Brane Cantenac is a nice wine - get a bottle and enjoy it!
@TrophyWineHunter
Жыл бұрын
Jason: wow....seem like you drank a lot of 2017s! I would tend to agree and when we look back 5 years from now, I think people will realize 2017 wines presented decently priced, fairly early drinking wines. Cheers!
Just had a 2018. Good wine, alongside d’issan which is drinking better today.
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Oscar: good to know. I would keep my eye on the Margaux region. It has been beaten down (pricing) for many years so kinda lke picking up stocks at low prices. Cheers!
@TobiasAsjogren
7 ай бұрын
I also had the 2018 and I think it was smashing!
Happy New Year 🍷
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Cory: Happy New Year to you as well...what are you drinking tonight?
@coryz6880
2 жыл бұрын
@@TrophyWineHunter Thx. 2014 Caymus & you?
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
@@coryz6880 Nice! Starting out with Dom 2008, the 2013 Pousse D'Or Chambolle and then, based on community poll 96 Ducru. Having dinner at restaurant where I know some of friends will be....that is why I am opening that many bottles. Cheers!
@coryz6880
2 жыл бұрын
@@TrophyWineHunter Sounds fantastic! Have fun & be safe. Look forward to the review.
aerating 2017 wine for three hours and later keeping it in a half empty bottle might be too much for it too handle… thanks for the video
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Vladimer: Yes, one of the instances where I should have just drank it right away. I did put it in the fridge but this wine had me a bit confused. I would like to try a better vintage but my perception is that winery is still trying to find its way back to its glory and not quite there. It would say for me, there is quite a distance between this wine and wines like Ducru, Leoville Las Cases, even Palmer in terms of drinking pleasure. It is making strides so the next 10 years will be critical to the development of the winery since I believe this is a period where Margaux region will experience some attention so if wineries can't take advantage of this period, they will float back into mediocrity. Cheers!
i had 2012 vintage other day… in my opinion very tasty , value wine and i wish I had more of this vintage… only one bottle left !
@TrophyWineHunter
Жыл бұрын
Sanjay: I think I drank this wine too young. Perhaps a few more years would be good. Decent wine for the price. Cheers!
@sanjaypatelmd4669
Жыл бұрын
@@TrophyWineHunter i decanted this wine for 16 hrs left in decanter in my cellar
@TrophyWineHunter
Жыл бұрын
@@sanjaypatelmd4669 wow. that is crazy. I personally have never had the patience to decant a wine more than a few hours. I have always wondered about that....where the actual time makes that much difference but obviously it does. I have always been concerned about the wine going bad or being overoxidated. Maybe I will try with an upcoming bottle. Cheers!
@sanjaypatelmd4669
Жыл бұрын
@@TrophyWineHuntermy trick is decant with love and keep wine at 55 degree
@TrophyWineHunter
Жыл бұрын
@@sanjaypatelmd4669 I am going to try!
Do you recommend other vintage years that are cheaper i.e..2008 at $79.98 or 2014 at $89.99 or 2015 at $99.98. 2018 seems to be the priciest vintage.
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
David: you must be the US as prices are higher here. I like them all at these prices. 2008 and 2014 I think would be ready to drink with a few hours in the decanter. 2015 would need a few years. Cheers!
I'm trying the 09 now. Yeah.. It is quality, but I think my palette at the moment, is more tuned towards more fruit-driven wine. The perfume is lovely, and the wine is definitely not tasting cheap. It might need way more time stored to let the acidity maybe not be so forward and bring forth more of the flavor? I have a 2016 Ducru-Beaucaillou that I have not opened yet. I have never tried first growths, and this plus Leoville Barton (2004 and 2014), and Gruaud Larose 2010 has me kind of sceptical of if I really enjoy second growths enough to justify the money. All of these have been slight let-downs. Maybe the Ducru will show me wrong? Maybe I just opened all of these too early? I expected the 2004 Leoville-Barton to wow me, due to the age and its reputation, but that one was the most astringent and closed off leathery one of them all.
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Alexander: if you like fruit forward, all the wines you have described would be on the austere side. I think you would enjoy Ducru but the one you should try is Pontet Canet, which is really fruit forwards. 04 and 14 were not particularly fleshy years and 09/10 are pretty tight. I would try 06 or 08 vintage which are really fleshy or even 16 of a wine like Lafon Rochet, Beychevelle. It is counter intuitive but Bordeaux gets fruitier with about 10-15 years of aging and the tannins dissipate and then let the fruit show through. 2nd growth really need some time so see my video on 2nd growth wines for which one I would recommend. Hope this helps. Cheers!
@Alexander_Tronstad
2 жыл бұрын
@@TrophyWineHunter Thanks for the suggestion of Pontet Canet! I will see if I can get a bottle someday, but the price is almost like Lafite! They had a 1996 Lafite on sale here in Norway for around 400 $, so just around 50 $ more than this. I have to say, I left almost half the bottle of Brane-Cantenac in the fridge, after coravining it, and today, I must say I enjoy it much more! It seems like it really benefits from a lot of decanting and a good chill. It is much smoother, and the texture is much silkier, whereas yesterday I found it so compact and almost harsh.
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
@@Alexander_Tronstad with a lot of the younger wines, they do taste better the 2nd day. So perhaps it is just you need to age the wines a bit. Hard to do but patience is rewarded when you are drinking Bordeaux. See my latest video on 4th Growth wines...there are some nice ones that should be in a good price range. Cheers!
Is 2017 good vintage?
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Sanjay: 2017 was a decent drinking vintage but not a vintage for investors. If you can get the wines are the right price, I would not pass up drinking them as they will tend to drink early. Good benchmark for wineries you think are on the rise as 2017 was a difficult vintage where wineries had to work to make good wines. So if the 2017 vintage of a particular wine is very good for your palate, you know they are on the rise. No stunners or long term investment wines but it all depends on the price for me whether I would buy it. Cheers!
got it for 70 usd
@TrophyWineHunter
2 жыл бұрын
Simon: OK price...tell me what you think when you drink it. Cheers