Peter Michael Les Pavots 2016

Peter Michael Les Pavots 2016

2016 Les Pavots meets the eye with a near-black ruby color and deep ruby rim. The nose displays a sophisticated bouquet of fresh leather, morel mushroom, vanilla bean, black fruit, cherry, blackberry, blueberry coulis, and a stylish garrigue touch. Full bodied and elegant, the wine offers the same rich, ripe fruit impressions on the palate. The mouth feel is dense and round, with supple tannins and subtle mineral notes leading to a long finish. Approachable now, the wine provides a classic presentation of our estates terroir. It will handsomely reward four years of cellaring and continue to age gracefully for two decades.

62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc, 13% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot

Critical Acclaim

99 James Suckling

Blackberries, blueberries, raspberry kir, sweet tobacco and black truffle. Full-bodied with chewy tannins and superb texture and length. Extremely poised and powerful. Finishes with so much fresh leather and blueberries. Goes on for minutes. Try after 2023.

98Jeb Dunnuck

A solid step up, the 2016 Les Pavots comes from vines planted in 1989 and is a mix of two separate sites in Knights Valley. This straight-up phenomenal Cabernet offers a powerful nose of ripe black fruits, tobacco leaf, chocolate, and spring flowers, and it has a Margaux-like complexity and elegance. Full-bodied on the palate, it has a multi-dimensional, seamless texture, building tannins, and a great, great finish. Its a baby of a wine that needs 4-5 years of bottle age, but it will probably merit a triple-digit score in 7-8 years and keep for three decades.

95 Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

A blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc, 13% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot, the very deep purple-black colored 2016 Les Pavots Proprietary Red Wine sings of crushed blackcurrants, blueberry preserves and blackberry pie with hints of camphor, black soil, truffles, crushed rocks and red roses plus a touch of garrigue. Full, rich and with wonderful finesse in the mouth, it has very finely grained tannins and plenty of vivacities, finishing long and earthy. 3,700 cases produced, to be released in the spring of 2019.

93 Wine Spectator

This delivers good intensity, with a racy and defined beam of plum sauce, black currant preserves and black licorice, all carried by a graphite spine. On the toasty side, with fruit to match. Very solidly built. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot.