Lynch Bages 2016 750ml

Owned by the Cazes family, Château Lynch-Bages is the Pauillac fifth growth that regularly performs at the level of far higher-ranked neighbors, and 2016 ranks among its very best vintages. Jane Anson awarded it 99 points, calling it "muscular but finely-tuned," with a floral, rose-stem lift to its Cabernet Sauvignon-driven fruit. A dry summer followed by timely September rain gave Left Bank wines of rare balance, and this one is rich and dense with blackberry, cassis, black tea, graphite and lead pencil over abundant ripe tannins. Several leading critics, including Wine Advocate and James Suckling, scored it just below. Starting to open now, it should drink well through 2050.