94-
95
JAMES SUCKLING: "This is a very balanced and pretty wine with ultra-fine tannins that are integrated and persist through the wine. It’s medium-bodied with lovely length and depth. A focused and thought-provoking wine for the vintage."
93
DECANTER: "Concentrated and intense on the palate in terms of depth of flavour - the blackcurrant, black cherry and damson fruit to the fore but set against firm, grippy and quite dense tannins that coat the whole mouth giving a liquorice, spice and slate tone to the palate. It's on the fuller end of the vintage and instead of delicacy you get a good dose of vibrant fruit power and tannic backbone. A bold and characterful wine, really quite abundant with all the individual elements on show. Still super-youthful, with swagger and pent up energy at this point. Lots of potential."
91-
93
THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Black cherries, incense, espresso, flowers and red fruits show with ease in the nose and in the round, soft, medium-bodied, elegant, plummy palate. The wine will take a year or two for the oak to fully integrate. Drink from 2024-2040."
17
WEINWISSER: "Intensives blaubeeriges Bouquet, Heidelbeersaft, schwarzes Johannisbeergelee und zarte Fliedernoten. Am kompakten Gaumen mit spröder Textur, festem Tanninkorsett und sehnigem Körper. Im gebündelten Finale verschlankt sich der Pomerol, viel Graphit und mürbe Adstringenz, aufgerundet."
90-
92
JEB DUNNUCK: "Tasted numerous times, the 2021 Château Le Bon Pasteur is a richer, more powerful wine in the vintage offering plenty of black fruits, graphite, and scorched earth nuances in a medium-bodied, nicely structured style. It has some background oak and will benefit from 2-4 years of bottle age. The blend is 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, from a 6.6-hectare site planted on clay and gravelly soils. Fermentation is in a mix of tank and barrel, and the élevage is in 70% new barrels."
90
FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Zartes Edelholz, ein Hauch von Vanille, schwarze Waldbeeren und Lakritze. Schlank, schwarze Beerenfrucht, feine Tannine, mineralisch, zart blättrige Nuancen im Nachhall."