2002 Château Branaire-Ducru

Community Tasting Notes (120) Avg Score: 90.2 points

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  3/10/2024 - amateur62 Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Fresh, red berries and elegance were the first impressions when I opened the bottle to check that it has no fault, so I decided not to decant. 4 hours later at dinner it showed a darker fruit profile and first tertiary notes, on the palate good freshness, medium+ bodied and rather elegant, smooth tannin and a good length, everything in a good balance.
  
  Classic old school Médoc at peak now but well stored bottles will easily go for another 6 to 8 years. Matched perfectly with our home made gratin dauphinois and the beef.

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  2/25/2024 - Tao wrote: 92 Points

  This little bottle tells me that this is the right moment to enjoy it. Although still showcasing its little tannic structure, no doubt in the right drinking window! Translucent ruby colour, a touch of watery, orange rim! Nose: leathery, spicy red fruits, a hint of oak! On the palate, it is full of substance, leathery fruits, a little sweet nutty fruits and tannic! A brief decanting may help! A fulfilling experience!

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  8/2/2023 - empire80 Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Last bottle of 12 (£12 IB, those were the days!), and after a few early years of difficult drinking this has transformed into a lovely example of "classic" claret. Yes the fruit is quite muted, but it is overlaid by delightful cedar notes and underpinned by savoury tertiary notes.

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  5/13/2023 - MRichman wrote:

  Very good, full fruited and muscular with lots of mineral, iron, blood. Long spicy finish. Low palate is a bit on the soft side. Does better served slightly chilled and after a bit of air. Fully mature, kinda softening, ready to drink now and for the next 5 years.

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  4/18/2023 - Oliverl1 Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Recent purchase of a few bottles from retail. Opened one, decanted a couple of hours and thought it was reasonably good, nothing special, but good value.
  
  Open another a few days later and gave it a 10 hour decant and it was just fabulous.
  
  It's amazing how giving even 20 year old wines a long decant makes such a difference. What terrific value. Just goes to show how there is great value in good producers in "off" vintages. These bottles I had bought could go on another 10 years. Probably just entering their plateau.

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