2016 Château Figeac 1500mL

99 POINTS

Yves Beck - Yvesbeck.wine

Rouge grenat dense aux reflets violets. Quel nez exceptionnel et quelle complexité. Puissance, élégance, fraîcheur et fruit. Agréables notes de groseilles et de myrtilles. Je relève également des notes de lard fumé et des touches florales. Mise en bouche friande, compacte, crémeuse. Au palais, le vin est d'une rare densité mais également très frais grâce à une vive structure. Cette dernière soutient idéalement le fruit, de la mise en bouche jusqu'en finale. Les tannins se révèlent très lentement au fil du palais. Ils ont un grain fin et une impressionnante aptitude à gérer leur puissance tout en laissant suffisamment de place à la finesse. Nous sommes donc dans la notion d'un grand vin qui tutoie la perfection. La fin de bouche confirme la grandeur du vin en rassemblant le côté racé, le fruit et la persistance. Je pense que ce vin n'est pas encore là où il peut, mais il a déjà un pied et 95% du second qui s'y trouvent…. Cela se traduit par 99/100 2026-2056 99/100

99 POINTS

Neal Martin - Wine Advocate

The 2016 Figeac is a blend of 36% Merlot, 26% Cabernet Franc and 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, picked from 23 September until 20 October at 49 hectoliters per hectare with 13.9% alcohol. The acidity is 3.67 pH, and it matured in 100% new oak (focused on five cooperages). This is a property that opened a new chapter in 2013, when Michel Rolland's services as a master blender have been called upon and engendered far greater harmony between the three grape varieties, now all singing from the same hymn sheet. It has a crisp blackberry nose, a little closed at first, opening nicely in the glass and offering raspberry coulis, pencil box and subtle mint aromas—classic Figeac in many ways. The palate is extraordinarily well balanced with a fine lattice of tannin sculpted to perfection. There is a slight edginess to this Figeac that I adore, the Cabernets very expressive, more so than the 2015, with graphite infusing every pore of the black fruit. This Figeac has an outstanding structure and a saline finish that beckons you back for another sip. The 2015 Figeac was stunning and the 2016 no less. Tasted on four separate occasions, and in the end, only one (banded) score became inevitable.

98 POINTS

Roger Voss - Wine Enthusiast

Barrel Sample. This aromatic wine is magnificent in its balance and richness. With its high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (38%), it is so typical of this estate. The tannins are velvety while packing a firm punch. Dark and concentrated, it is a great wine for long-term aging.

98 POINTS

Neal Martin - Vinous

The 2016 Figeac has a nose of real pedigree, featuring very well-defined, ferrous black fruit with hints of truffle and tobacco and conveying exceptional mineralité and tension. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins, a fine bead of acidity and wonderful structure and density toward the finish. This is a seriously fine proposition, although it is a surly Saint-Émilion that may well close down for a while before blazing brightly in 15–20 years’ time. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. 98+

98 POINTS

Jeb Dunnuck

Another brilliant wine from the genius of Frédéric Faye, the 2016 Château Figeac checks in as 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc that spent 19 months in new French oak. Roughly 75% of the production made it into the grand vin. This deeply colored beauty is a legendary wine in the making and offers ultra-pure aromas and flavors of crème de cassis, smoke tobacco, dried herbs, chocolate, truffle, and graphite. Showing more violets notes with time in the glass, it builds incrementally on the palate, with flawless balance as well as incredible elegance, no hard edges, and a finish that won't quit. Readers will have a blast comparing the 2016 and 2015 vintages over the coming 3-4 decades and this estate is firing on all cylinders. This will most likely merit a triple-digit rating in 7-8 years and keep for 4 decades or more.

98 POINTS

Jane Anson - Decanter

A testament to the work being undertaken at Figeac in recent years, this has depth and intensity while retaining the smile of the fruit. Richness combines with gorgeous length and intensity, every bit as impressive as it was during en primeur. Touches of violet and a silky texture precede hugely precise slate walls that pull the fruit into place through the palate. It takes its time in the glass to fully open, only slowly revealing the black olives, pungent white pepper and rosemary aromatics. Bottled in late July. 100% new oak. Drinking Window 2024 - 2045

98 POINTS

Antonio Galloni MW - Vinous

The 2016 Figeac is simply extraordinary. A wine of pure energy and vitality, the 2016 pulses with a real sense of drive. Lavender, mint, crème de cassis and cedar start to develop in the glass, but what is most remarkable about the 2016 is its total sense of harmony. There is natural tension, a sort of push and pull, between the wine's intense fruit and structural underpinnings that makes the 2016 a marvel to taste and contemplate. It was positively stunning in two separate tastings. Technical Director Frédéric Faye and his team made an epic Figeac in 2016. 98+

Bernard Burtschy - Le Figaro

Frais, dynamique et séveux. Une des plus belles émotions de l'année. 20/20