In 2019 Saint Estephe produced so many fabulous, it is almost an embarrassment of riches for producers in the appellation. In fact, with 2019 Bordeaux vintage, the strengths in the Medoc are found in the north of the Left Bank, starting with St. Estephe and Pauillac. The Cabernet Sauvignon based wines here, with terroir that retained the necessary moisture over the warm, sunny, and dry growing season produced prodigious wines.
Perhaps, 2019 St. Estephe in some cases some of the wines are not quite the show-stoppers as they were in the 2018 vintage. 2019 Saint Estephe lacks the same level of concentration and flamboyance. But time will tell as tasters, wine lovers and critics continue tasting and retasting 2019 Saint Estephe wines as they age, evolve, and develop over the next several decades.
Regardless of which vintage you favor, there are stunning wines of character at all price levels found in 2019 Saint Estephe as you can see from my tasting notes below. Something else you should notice is the level of consistency in the vintage as every producer made simply beautiful wines!
For a review of the vintage conditions or to look at tasting notes and ratings for more than 750 wines The Complete Guide To all the Best 2019 Bordeaux Wines
The following 2019 St. Estephe wines were all tasted in non-blind conditions in my home office.
2019 Beau-Site – Spicy with fresh herbs, forest leaf, and Asian spices that accompany all the sweet, ripe, cassis and blackberry. There is ample freshness to all the ripe fruits, concentration, and a nice touch of cocoa along with a firm tannic edge allowing the wine to age and evolve. This is clearly the finest vintage of Beau-Site ever produced! Drink from 2024-2039. 92 Pts
2019 Calon Segur – Power, purity, complexity, and richness combine to produce stunning levels of intensity, length, and freshness. The depth of fruit here is almost off the charts. Almost opaque in color, the wine is all about its display of spices, blackberries, black plums, black currants, mint, espresso, and tobacco leaf character. Perfectly balanced, poised, and rich, the tannins are polished and refined, making this beauty effortless to drink. This is a very textural wine that is clearly one of the stars of the vintage. Drink from 2030-2060. 98 Pts
2019 Calon Ségur Marquis de Calon Ségur – Deep in color, here you find flowers, blackberry, cassis, and spice notes to get things started. Round, polished, rich, and lush, the wine is packed with layers of ripe, dark, opulent fruits that already tastes and feels just great. This is so good, it is hard to believe it is a second wine. Enjoy it while waiting for the Grand Vin to mature. Drink from 2023-2037. 93 Pts
2019 Capbern – Inky dark in color, the wine kicks off with layers of plushly-textured, dark red fruits, espresso, spice and round, polished tannins. The fruit-filled finish is lush, round, and opulent with length and richness in the fruits. Clearly, this is a new level of quality for Capbern. Drink from 2024-2040. 93 Pts
2019 Cos Labory – Cos Labory has been making better wine than ever recently, and the 2019 continues that trend. Smoke, earthy, spicy, floral red and black fruits are all over the place on the nose and palate. Medium-bodied, fresh, long, fruity-filled, and forward, with a solid depth of flavor, ripe tannins, and a creamy textured finish. and a peppery nuance that kicks in on the endnote, this is going to be great with a few years of age. Drink from 2025-2040. 93 Pts
2019 Cos d’Estournel – Full-bodied, concentrated, refined and showy, this is the modern era’s version of a classic vintage for Cos d’Estournel. Initially, you find a litany of spices, incense, flowers, espresso, and red with black currants, mixed with blackberries. Intense, rich, deep, and lively, the fruit displays freshness, length, purity, energy, lift, and the structure to age and evolve for decades. In comparison with recent great vintages of COS, with 2019, the wine exchanges the power and concentration found in 2018 and 2016 for a greater sense of elegance, purity, and classicism. Regardless of which vintage you find best, the difference is minuscule. Wine lovers over the next several decades are going to have a blast tasting and debating which vintage they prefer. Drink from 2030-2060. 97 Pts
2019 Cos d’Estournel Les Pagodes de Cos – Deeply colored, the wine is packed with layers of dark red fruits, 5 spice, smoke, tobacco leaf, cocoa, and wet earth, with a hint of thyme in the background. The tannins and soft, ripe, and polished, giving you a well-structured backdrop for all the beautiful fruit that races over your palate with its freshness and silky tannins. This second wine could easily be a Grand Cru Classe’ if another classification were to take place. Drink from 2024-2039. 94 Pts
2019 Cos d’Estournel Blanc – Bordeaux – Flowers, pomelo, lemon curd and a refreshing touch of spicy, green apples and vanilla gives this fresh, lively, crisp, slightly honeyed wine its character. You can enjoy this with pleasure on release. Drink from 2022-2032. 95 Pts
2019 Cos d’Estournel Pagodes de Cos Blanc – Bordeaux – Spicy lemon, lime, green apple, and floral notes continue from the nose to the palate. The wine is fresh, zesty and creamy, with a touch of sweetness in the yellow citrus in the endnote. Drink from 2022-2027. 91 Pts
2019 Haut Marbuzet – There is a strong oaky note on the nose, which is the first thing you notice until you begin to dig into all of its spicy, savory-tinged, red fruits, citrus, and wet earthy nuances. Lush, round, and richly textured, the medium-bodied wine shows a plush, polished, fresh, sweet, vibrant cherry character that shines brightly on the mid-palate and in the finish. Drink from 2025-2037. 93 Pts
2019 La Croix de Pez – Lighter styled, medium-bodied, soft, fresh, silky-textured, red cherry and kirsch oriented wine that shows a lot of purity and refinement, instead of power or concentration. Drink from 2022-2033. 89 Pts
2019 La Haye – Already a treat to taste, the wine is sweet, fresh, fruity, spice and offers hints of chocolate and herbs in the savory, spicy, energetic finish. Drink from 2023-2036. 90 Pts
2019 Laffitte-Carcasset – Smoke, chocolate, plums, tobacco, and wet earth are easy to find on the nose. On the palate, the wine is fresh, crisp, bright, and crunchy with nuances of chocolate, spice, and licorice in the savory finish. Drink from 2024-2037. 91 Pts
2019 Lafon Rochet – Deep in color, the wine exudes black and blue fruit, smoke, spice, tobacco and lilacs on the nose. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, with chewy tannins and vibrancy, leaving you with layers of ripe, fresh, spicy red fruit with earthy overtones in the endnote. Allow it a few years in the cellar and it should soften and fill out nicely. Drink from 2025-2040. 94 Pts
2019 Le Boscq – The tobacco, wet earth, dark cherries, smoke, and spice nuances come through easily on the nose. On the palate, the wine is even better with loads of bright, fresh, spicy, chewy red berries with ample freshness. Rounding everything out, the finish lingers with a nice spicy touch with just a hint of chocolate in the endnote. Drink from 2024-2038. 92 Pts
2019 Le Boscq Heritage de Le Boscq – Fresh, forward, soft, early-drinking, red berry, spice and cocoa filled charmer that will be perfect to enjoy on release. Drink from 2022-2028. 87 Pts
2019 Le Crock – Medium-bodied, soft, energetic red fruits with touches of herbs, flowers, spice, and wet earth come through easily on the nose and palate. The hints of spice, wet earth, black and red fruits in the finish seal the deal here. You can enjoy this on release, but it will be better after 1-2 years of age. Drink from 2023-2035. 91 Pts
2019 Lilian Ladouys – Sporting a nice depth of color, the wine pops right off the bat with its nuances of black cherries, currants, thyme, mint, tobacco leaf, spice, and smoke. Medium/full-bodied, fresh and vibrant, the fruits with its chocolate and minty overtones linger in the slightly, dusty, long finish. This will age and develop for at least 2 decades or more. Drink from 2025-2040. 94 Pts
2019 Lilian Ladouys a Devise de Lilian – Early-drinking, fresh, forward, lighter-styled, red currant wine that is already delivering its olive-tinted, savory, cherry filled pleasures with ease. Enjoy this while waiting for the Grand Vin to develop. Drink from 2022-2029. 88 Pts
2019 Martin – The cornucopia of herbs, mint and cedar here almost overwhelms the red fruits. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, soft, polished and fresh, with an easy-going attitude in its red berry filled finish. Drink from 2023-2030. 87 Pts
2019 Meyney – Showing much better in bottle than it did from the barrel, the deeply colored wine is imbued with cigar box, tobacco leaf, spice, espresso, wet earth, and dark currants and blackberries. On the palate, the wine focuses on its medium/full-bodied core of ripe, sweet, dark red fruits, soft, tannins, and polished finish and its light kiss of chocolate in the endnote. Drink from 2025-2042. 94 Pts
2019 Meyney La Chapelle de Meyney – Medium-bodied, fresh, bright, forward, crisp strawberry, red plum and herb centric wine for early drinking, ready to go consumption. Drink from 2022-2027. 87 Pts
2019 Montrose – One of a handful of wines I was not able to taste in barrel. However, it was worth waiting for as the wine hits all the right notes. Deep in color, the nose offers a spice-tinged array of dark red and black fruits, herbs, espresso, tobacco leaf, and black currants. The wine is full-bodied, intense, dense, long, and concentrated. There is a solid depth of flavor that resonates on the palate and in the finish, which leaves you with an earthy display of dark red pit fruits and a touch of peppery spice. Like all the great vintages of Montrose, this is built to age and evolve for decades. Drink from 2030-2060. 98 Pts
2019 Montrose La-Dame-de-Montrose – Ripe sweet, dark red berries surrounded by cedar, tobacco wrapper, spice, and wet forest aromatics is at work on the nose. On the palate, there is more than ample, soft, ripe, sweet, crisp, elegant, earthy red fruits with a spicy touch on the backend to offer loads of pleasure with just a year or two of cellaring. This is a top vintage for La Dame de Montrose for drinking until the Grand Vin has a chance to develop and mature. Drink from 2024-2040. 93 Pts
2019 Ormes-de-Pez – The wine has picked up steam during the aging process. Now you find notes of flowers, peppery red fruits, cocoa, tobacco leaf, cedar, and spice. The wine is fresh, lush, round, and ripe, with a rich, creamy, dark red fruit packed mid-palate. This is clearly the best vintage of Ormes-de-Pez ever produced. Drink from 2024-2040. 93 Pts
2019 Petit-Bocq – Blackberries, currants, and a touch of chocolate along with 5 spice get the wine going. Medium-bodied, packed with layers of ripe, chewy, red fruits and spice, the wine is energetic in the fruit-filled finish. Give it a few years in the cellar and it should fill out quite nicely. Drink from 2024-2037. 91 Pts
2019 de Pez – Quite floral in nature, the wine continues picking up steam with the addition of spice box, pepper, herbs, red and black currants and espresso bean on the nose. From there the wine is fresh, sweet and vibrant, with chewy fruit, creamy tannins and a long, fruit-packed finish with a touch of spice, dark cocoa and dusty tannins in the endnote. Drink from 2025-2039. 93 Pts
2019 Phelan Segur – Flowers, smoke, black fruit, red fruit, and blue fruit along with cedar and spice work well here. The wine has a solid depth of flavor-packed with dark currants, polished, round textures, and a blast of chocolate-coated currants with mint and espresso in the rich finish. This could be the best vintage of Phelan Segur yet. Give it a few years in the cellar and it will be just great for 15 or more years after that. Drink from 2025-2042. 94 Pts
2019 Serilhan – Flowers, tobacco leaf, cocoa, espresso, and red currants come through easily on the nose. On the palate, the wine is soft, creamy, fresh, and loaded with polished, ripe red currants and spice, with a hint of cocoa powder in the generous, crisp finish. Allow it a year or two in the cellar and it will be even better. This is a superb value from Saint Estephe. Drink from 2024-2038. 92 Pts
2019 St. Estephe – Forward, medium-bodied, fresh, chewy, cocoa-covered, red currant oriented wine that will be easy to drink on release. Drink from 2022-2030. 87 Pts
2019 Tour de Pez – Flowers, herbs, spice and red fruits come through on the nose easily. On the palate, the wine is soft-textured, medium-bodied, fresh and already, disarmingly easy to taste and enjoy. The finish leaves you with energetic sweet and tart red berries. This is showing much better after the aging process. Drink from 2023-2034. 91 Pts
2019 Tour Saint-Fort – Earthy with savory touches to the red fruits on the nose and palate, the wine is medium-bodied, bright and crisp, with a salty, chewy red berry and green olive tinted finish. Drink from 2023-2030. 84 Pts
2019 Tour des Termes – Flowers and mint kick things off before getting to all the ripe, currants, earth, smoke, and espresso notes. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, soft textured, and energetic with a nice blast of fresh red fruits and chocolate in the endnote. Drink from 2024-2036. 92 Pts
2019 Tronquoy Lalande – Spicy, with tinges of wet earth, tobacco leaf, Asian spice, herbs, and currants. The wine is rich, ripe, round, fleshy, and packed with sweet, dark red pit fruits and wet earth, finishing with the right amount of dark chocolate, espresso, blackberries, and currants. The wine should be allowed to age for a few years before popping a cork. 2025-2040. 94 Pts
We have only one more report to publish, which will be added online today as close out our coverage of 2019 Bordeaux with our look at the best of Guide to everything you want to know about all the best 2019 Pauillac Wines
2019 Pauillac.
