These guys have really started to make an impact on Pauillac`s landscape over the past few vintages and do so again here. It’s not quite up to the brilliant delivery of 2016, but this is firm, vibrant, bright and full of promise with tannins that layer up slowly and stealthily then present you with a cheque. There is clear austerity on the attack but then it opens up to show purity and precision of the fruit, with a sweetness to the berries making it seem likely that seven or eight years will be plenty before this is limbered and ready to go. Drink 2025 - 2038. 93 points

Darkest crimson with smudgy, wide rim. Fragrant with small dark berries, both cassis and elderberry and just a little hint of vanilla. Firm, chewy and rich in fruit. Thick yet rounded, the fruit enveloping the tannins. Juicy, fresh finish, even if the texture has a thickness about it. 16.5 points

Pédesclaux was purchased in late 2009 by real estate mogul, Jacky Lorenzetti. In addition to the purchase of Pédesclaux and its 26 hectares of vineyards, Lorenzetti was also able to acquire an additional 12 hectares of vineyards planted at 10,000 vines per hectare that sit atop the Milon plateau (their rows are interspersed with those of Mouton and Lafite). The total vineyard acreage in 2018 was 49.7 hectares with an average vine age of 35 years. The soils are typically gravelly atop a clay subsoil. It will spend an estimated 16 months on the lees in barrels, 60% new and 40% second year. The blend is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot, and it has 13.96% alcohol. Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Pedesclaux comes charging out of the gate with rambunctious baked plums, warm cassis and Morello cherries scents plus hints of spice cake, menthol and fragrant earth. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers mouth-coating black fruits and spicy accents, with a soft, fine-grained frame, finishing long. 92-94 points

The 2018 Pédesclaux is a fruity, supple Pauillac, that will drink well upon release. Although not especially complex, the 2018 offers lovely immediacy and plenty of near to medium-term appeal. Succulent dark cherry, plum, chocolate and spice are nicely pushed forward in this decidedly overt Pauillac. The 2018 is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. 89-92 points

This is the tenth vintage since the estate was purchased by Jacky Lorenzetti, and it is only fair to say it is undergoing a significant evolution. The blend in this vintage is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot, all picked between September 25th and October 12th. This accounts for 60% of the harvest, and it has an alcohol of 13.96% and a pH of 3.8. It begins with a very fine nose of black cherry, damson and black violet, in a very pure style, with a little floral element, but it feels very purposeful and focused. There is a little touch of dark soot too. The palate is fresh, supple, broad and correct, filled with the flavours of black cherry stone, fragrant peony and violets again, with touches of sooty substance like the nose. Underneath it all there lies a finely poised and svelte bed of tannins, giving a charming grip, along with a fresh and vigorous acidity. A very convincing character overall, broad with ripe tannin, tightly knit and correct, which frames the finish very nicely. This is showing very well, and is surely the best wine from Pédesclaux I can recall tasting. 93-95 points