2016 Quintus

96 POINTS

James Suckling

This is so beautifully integrated already with dark, stony minerals, slate and graphite, as well as a swathe of ripe blackberries and dark, spicy plums. The palate starts out quite tight and maintains a long, linear shape that pushes deeper and wider into the finish. Regal and velvety on the surface. Profoundly fine and long below. Freshens as it goes, too. Superb. Try from 2023.

96 POINTS

Bettane & Desseauve - Bettane & Desseauve

Le plus réussi depuis la création du cru, parfaitement classique dans son bouquet et très adroit dans la qualité de son tannin.

95 POINTS

Jeb Dunnuck

The deep ruby-colored 2016 Château Quintus is thrilling stuff, and my money is on it being the finest to date. Saturated purple in color, powerful notes of blackberries, currants, spicy tobacco, and a touch graphite all flow to a deep, rounded, sexy Saint-Emilion that’s beautifully balanced. It shows the class of the vintage and is capable of lasting for two decades or more.

94 POINTS

Neal Martin - Vinous

The 2016 Quintus has a very noble bouquet with beautifully defined blackberry and briary fruit, wonderfully integrated oak and a genuine sense of focus and poise. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, plenty of freshness and a pure, tensile, focused finish that is very seductive. This is a beautifully crafted Saint-Émilion and one of the best releases of Quintus to date. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.

94 POINTS

Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW - Wine Advocate

The 2016 Quintus is a blend of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc. It has a medium to deep garnet-purple color and features a quiet intensity of chocolate-covered cherries, warm mulberries and plum preserves scents with underlying hints of dried lavender, star anise and potpourri. Medium-bodied, the palate is packed with perfumed black fruit layers, framed by seductively plush tannins and great freshness and finishing with fantastic length.

94 POINTS

Jane Anson - Decanter

The sixth vintage under the wing of Haut-Brion. The vines didn't block in the heat here, which is why the alcohols are generous, but this is absolutely perfectly balanced. The generosity of the ripe blackberry and cassis fruit stretches out with the juice running right through it, joined by some exotic spice and grilled oak touches through the mid-palate. But they never overwhelm the gentle extraction, and overall this is an extremely successful Quintus that leaves a beautifully fragrant quality in the mouth. 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc. Drinking Window 2027 - 2050

94 POINTS

James Lawther MW - Decanter Magazine

I have to admit a personal preference for this wine, which is deep coloured, dense and profound. It has huge fruit weight but elegance as well, the tannins present but fine. The finish is long and persistent and there's refreshment, too. The late season warmth with cool nights could have contributed to the balance of this wine. The yield was a healthy 45.1hl/ha. Drinking Window 2024 - 2042

93 POINTS

Neal Martin - Wine Advocate

The 2016 Chateau Quintus, of course under the umbrella of Domaine Clarence Dillon (Haut Brion, La Mission Haut Brion), is a blend of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc picked between 3 and 20 October. This is the highest proportion of Cabernet Franc since the debut in 2011. Matured in just under 30% new oak, it has a slightly broody bouquet at first with black fruit and hints of allspice and clove. The palate is nicely structured, with the Cabernet Franc lending this impressive backbone (more than the 2015) and a slightly masculine, grippy finish that suggests it will be a long-term proposition. Excellent.