2025 Echo de Lynch-Bages (Pauillac)

Deep and rich in colour. Structured, toasted spice, dark chocolate, espresso, graphite, mint leaf. Great stuff, easy to recommend, one to look out for. 3.60 pH. 20% new oak. Harvest September 9 to 21. A far clearer link with the main Lynch Bages estate than many 2nd wines in the vintage, and one of the `sibling` wines of the vintage. Nicolas Labenne technical director. 94 points

The 2025 Echo de Lynch-Bages reveals aromas of vanilla, spices, creamy new oak and dark berries. Medium- to full-bodied, dense and concentrated, it’s built around a solid chassis of firm, youthful tannins, concluding with a long, spicy finish. It`s a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc, matured with 20% new oak. 90-91 points

The 2025 Echo de Lynch-Bages is a pretty serious second wine that is going to need a number of years to soften. Quite frankly, I don`t think I have ever tasted an Echo with this much power and overall structure. Dark-fleshed fruit, gravel, incense, licorice and scorched earth convey gravitas. There`s a lot of wine here, but patience is required. 91-93 points

The 2025 Echo de Lynch-Bages, matured in 20% new oak, has a little more rondeur and opulence compared with the Haut-Batailley, emanating from that 34% Merlot. The palate is quite full and voluminous in the mouth, grippy with slightly chalky tannins enveloped in black plum and blackcurrant fruit. It segues into a quite peppery finish that tingles on the aftertaste. Give it a couple of years in bottle. 89-91 points