Get ready to meet a seriously impressive Pauillac — Lynch-Bages 2018 is packed with rich dark fruits, subtle spice, and a smooth, structured finish. With plenty of muscle and elegance, it’s perfect for anyone who loves a bold wine that can age beautifully. Definitely one to stash away and enjoy down the road!

James Suckling | JS 97
Published: Jan 15, 2011

Aromas of blackberries, cloves, licorice, dried leaves, graphite and black olives. It’s full-bodied with firm, tight tannins. Structured and tannic with beautiful austerity and a long, mineral and layered finish. The tannins grow on the palate. Try from 2026.

Decanter | D 96
Published: Nov 5, 2022
Drink: 2028-2048

Gorgeous floral aromatics, violets alongside cherry stones and cinnamon. Grippy tannins set the tone straight away, this is a serious and impressive wine with a powerful texture and concentration of ripe fruits, bitter dark cocoa powder, dried herbs and soft spices that dominate the palate. Grippy tannins have a chalky minerality that coats the entire mouth while acidity keeps things lifted stopping things becoming too heavy or overwhelming. This is muscular - still with some tension - yet retains a sense of direction and precision. A confident bottling with brilliant ageing potential.
Closure: Cork
Alcohol: 14.10%
Body: Full
Oak: Oaked
Grapes: 6% Cabernet Franc 72% Cabernet Sauvignon 19% Merlot

The Wine Advocate | RP 96
Published: Mar 31, 2021
Drink: 2026-2055

Composed of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, the 2018 Lynch-Bages was aged in 75% new barriques. Deep garnet-purple in color, it soars out of the glass with a magnificently expressive nose of blueberry compote, black cherry preserves and blackcurrant pastilles, plus suggestions of dark chocolate, licorice, tar and violets with a waft of hoisin. The medium to full-bodied palate is just as impactful as the nose, coating the mouth with juicy black berry and spicy layers, supported by firm, grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long with a refreshing earthiness coming through at the end.

Jancis Robinson | JR 17.5
Published: Feb 25, 2025
Drink: 2030-2050

72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. Aged for 18 months in oak barrels (75% new).
Deep purple-black hue. Big, powerful and brooding. Riper style with an almost raisined edge to the fruit but freshness as well so there’s balance. Substantial weight of fruit on the palate with big, punchy tannins. Muscular and assertive but clear potential.

Lynchbages.com

« Purple Rain… »
Following a particularly wet winter that recorded mixed temperatures, the wine season began with a slightly late bud break. However, it followed a normal pattern thanks to mild temperatures at the beginning of April. The 2018 vintage was then marked by two periods. The first saw relatively mild temperatures but heavy rainfall, from March to early July. The second period began mid-July with fine summer weather, hot temperatures and excessive sunshine. Full flowering occurred in line with the 20-year average.

Thanks to ideal weather conditions, harvest started on 19 September with the Merlot and was followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot until 9 October. Upon arrival at the cellar, the sanitary state of the grapes was perfect, with rich sugar content and exceptional polyphenols. Alcoholic fermentation was straightforward and homogeneous and average vatting time was 21 days. During the runoff from 15 to 29 October, the vats produced juice yields that were below expectations. Then came the time for malolactic fermentation, one third of which took place in vats and two thirds in barrels. It was completed in November. The first blends were carried out in December.

Lynch-Bages 2018 offers a seductive mouthfeel with powerful yet silky tannins. On the palate, there is a strong prelude of black chocolate, rosemary and spices on a fresh core leading to a long finish.

Ageing
18 MONTHS
French oak barrels (75% new wood)

Blend
72%Cabernet Sauvignon
19%Merlot
6%Cabernet Franc
3%Petit Verdot