2023 Château de Pez, St-Estèphe

The 2023 de Pez represents another important step for the property. The team, led by Pichon Comtesse Technical Director Nicolas Glumineau, continues to work toward a more refined style than in the past. Black cherry, plum, licorice and mocha fill out the layers nicely. There's still plenty of Saint-Estèphe breadth, but these days, the tannins show greater polish. Floral overtones extend the finish. Tasted three times.

The 2023 Château de Pez has a refined bouquet that demands some coaxing from the glass. It shyly reveals black brambly fruit, a hint of melted tar and black tea, very pure in style as it gradually finds its voice. The palate is medium-bodied with quite firm tannins and good backbone. Fresh, with admirable salinity, it just needs a little more cohesion on the finish (though a second bottle at Pichon Lalande showed exactly that). This is a very fine Saint-Estèphe.

A beautiful Pez with a solid core of fruit and creamy, refined tannins. It’s complex with plenty of blackcurrant, graphite, lead-pencil and nutmeg flavors. Linear and polished texture. Very precise and defined. Better than 2022.

The 2023 de Pez confirms the progress taking place at this address. As readers may remember, this estate has now been fully restructured and serves as something of a research and development laboratory for its sibling, Pichon Lalande, and director Nicolas Glumineau and his team have been working to bring more precision and purity to the wine. Offering up aromas of cassis, violets and pencil shavings, framed by nicely integrated new oak, it's medium to full-bodied, polished and suave, with a layered core of sweet, vibrant fruit framed by ripe, powdery tannins.