2015 Clos Fourtet

98 POINTS

Jeb Dunnuck

An absolute blockbuster is the 2015 Clos Fourtet, which is a blend of 88% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc. It offers a huge nose of black and blue fruits, loads of incense, violets, chocolate, and underbrush aromas, full body, a seductive, ethereal texture, lots of fine tannins, and a finish that just won’t quit. This is as classy, seamless, and elegant as it gets. Give bottle 4-5 years of bottle age and enjoy over the following two decades.

97 POINTS

Neal Martin - Vinous

The 2015 Clos-Fourtet has a sensual, warm bouquet with chestnut and smoke-tinged red fruit, well defined and more understated than its peers. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, elegant and refined, silky and smooth in texture with beautifully poised red cherry and cranberry notes toward the finish. A tang of tobacco lingers on the aftertaste. Stunning. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting.

97 POINTS

Jeff Leve - The Wine Cellar Insider

An arousing blend of silky, supple textures, opulent, sensuous fruits, rich, intense flavors, length and purity, this wine is like basking on the sands of St. Tropez with Scarlett Johansson by your side. Smoke, licorice and kirsch liqueur with a strong sense of minerality are all over the place! This dazzler delivers a finish that will roll over in your mind for days. Voluptuously textured, the wine is a blend of 88% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc, reaching 14% alcohol with a pH of 3.70. The harvest took place from September 18 to October 12 and the wine is aging in 60% new, French oak barrels.

97 POINTS

Jane Anson - Decanter

This is intense and withholding right now, not budging an inch. It's dark and inky in colour, and on the nose and attack it simply hints at what is to come. But with time in the glass, the layers of cassis fruits and dark spices are dealt out one by one, firm and confident. Clearly one that will bring enjoyment in time.

97 POINTS

Antonio Galloni MW - Vinous

Clos Fourtet is a drop-dead gorgeous beauty in 2015. Powerful, vivid and wonderfully nuanced, it exudes class. Inky red/purplish stone fruit, lavender, spice, mint and orange peel give the 2015 its myriad shades of nuance, but it is the wine's balance and total sense of harmony that elevate it to the realm of the profound. In 2015, Clos Fourtet has a bit more body and resonance than is typically the case. Beneath all of the fruit, however, the 2015 has more than enough energy and structural underpinning to drink well for many years. This is a stunning wine from the Cuvelier family and consulting winemakers Stéphane Derenoncourt and Julien Lavenu. The blend is 88% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc. Tasted three times.

96 POINTS

James Suckling

Blueberry, stone, mineral and dried-flower aromas follow through to a full body. Silky and polished tannins and a long, flavorful finish. Shows finesse, and polished with such sensitivity. Superb finish. Drink in 2022 but already a joy to taste.

96 POINTS

James Molesworth - Wine Spectator

Thoroughly ripe but seemingly light-footed, as a remarkably silky structure lets waves of plum sauce, blueberry reduction and raspberry puree glide through effortlessly. Light licorice, violet and ganache hints add to the finish, showing very fine chalky minerality in the background. Drink now through 2035. 4,417 cases made.  –JM

95 POINTS

Neal Martin - Wine Advocate

The 2015 Clos Fourtet has a very pure bouquet with black cherries, redcurrants, dried orange peel and cedar scents that unfurl beautifully in the glass. The palate is ripe and sensual on the entry, velvety smooth in texture with supremely well-integrated new oak. Underneath the harmonious veneer is a Saint-Émilion with superb backbone and it lingers long on the finish. There is an air of confidence about this Clos Fourtet from Mathieu Cuvelier and his team and it should age with style and panache. Anticipated maturity: 2021 - 2045.