Saintayme - Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2019

Jamessuckling.com

93 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe5/5/2022

This is racy and really fine with beautiful, polished tannins that run the length of the wine, It’s medium-bodied and really energetic. Hints of nutmeg. Give it a year or two, but hard to resist.

Jeb DUNNUCK

92 / 100

byJeb Dunnuckthe4/12/2022

I wasn't able to taste the 2019 Saintayme from barrel, but it's solid from bottle, offering a medium-bodied, elegant profile that's very much in the style of the vintage. Ripe black cherries, mulberries, crushed stone, graphite, and sappy flowers all emerge from the glass, and it's focused, firm, and straight on the palate. It’s going to benefit from bottle age.

Wine Advocate

90 / 100

byWilliam Kelleythe4/7/2022

Produced by the Durantou family, the 2019 Saintayme is a Saint-Émilion derived from soils rich in large stones in Saint-Étienne-de-Lisse. Offering up aromas of sweet raspberries, raw cocoa, spices and rose petals, it's medium to full-bodied, bright and lively, with a fleshy core of fruit and fine, powdery tannins that assert themselves on the finish. This will reward a bit of bottle age. It's 100% Merlot, all planted on vigor-reducing riparia rootstocks. 90+

Vinous

93 / 100

byAntonio Gallonithe2/28/2022

The 2019 Saintayme is just as impressive from bottle as it was from barrel. Rich, deep and explosive, the 2019 offers up an exciting mélange of dark cherry, plum, chocolate, licorice and dark spice. I would cellar the 2019 for at least a few years. This is an especially serious edition of the Saintayme. All the elements are impeccably balanced. Tasted two times.

Vinous

93 / 100

byAntonio Gallonithe2/24/2022

The 2019 Saintayme is just as impressive from bottle as it was from barrel. Rich, deep and explosive, the 2019 offers up an exciting mélange of dark cherry, plum, chocolate, licorice and dark spice. I would cellar the 2019 for at least a few years. This is an especially serious edition of the Saintayme. All the elements are impeccably balanced. Tasted two times.

Vinous

91 / 100

byNeal Martinthe2/17/2022

The 2019 Saintayme has calmed down nicely since I tasted the barrel sample, still outgoing in some ways yet displaying fine delineation and a tad more terroir expression. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins on the entry, quite sapid for this cuvée, and lightly spiced, leading to a structured finish. Don’t hesitate to leave this in bottle for a couple of years.

Wine Advocate

89-91 / 100

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe7/15/2020

Produced by Denis Darantou and family of Château L’Eglise-Clinet, made from 100% Merlot, the 2019 Saintayme has a deep garnet-purple color. It explodes from the glass with bombastic notes of stewed plums, baked black cherries and fruitcake with hints of mocha, unsmoked cigars and fragrant soil plus a waft of Chinese five spice. Medium to full-bodied, rich and decadent in the mouth, it has a solid foundation of chewy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing spicy.

WeinWisser

17 / 20

the7/7/2020

Vinous

92-94 / 100

byAntonio Gallonithe6/18/2020

The 2019 Saintayme offers up a veritable explosion of sweet red cherry, kirsch and floral notes. Deep and lush, with tremendous freshness, Saintayme is terrific in 2019. In fact, this is one of the better recent vintages I can remember tasting. The purity of fruit and overall energy are both remarkable, while the harder edges and slightly savory qualities that can be present are barely perceptible. The 2019 is 100% Merlot picked between October 1 and 4. Denis Durantou's 2019s are absolutely brilliant across the board. My tasting was obviously bittersweet, as Durantou lost his battle with illness just a few weeks prior. Denis Durantou was one of the most intriguing characters in Bordeaux. I can't say I knew him well, but I always enjoyed tasting with him, as he was a person that spoke more with his eyes than with words. Things were implied rather than overtly stated. So, I tasted the 2019s with daughters Constance and Noémie over Zoom, in typical 2020 fashion. The Durantou sisters describe 2019 as a year with an early flowering and homogenous ripening that led to small, concentrated berries and higher pHs than normal. Temperatures were kept cool in the cellar, where both alcoholic and malolactic fermentations took place over cuvaison of 21 days (for all wines), in a reductive enviroment with little oxygen. From top to bottom, the Durantou 2019s are positively stellar. Don't miss them!

Vinous

90-92 / 100

byNeal Martinthe6/16/2020

The 2019 Saintayme, Denis Durantou's Saint-Émilion pure Merlot vineyard, was picked between 1 and 4 October and matures in 30% new oak. It is the most outgoing of the late winemaker's sextet of wines, kirsch and crushed strawberry scents bursting from the glass with a touch of cola. The palate is fleshy and ripe with impressive weight. Good density develops towards the back end with a saline tang on the aftertaste. Give it two or three years in bottle.

Jamessuckling.com

93-94 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe6/11/2020

A red with lovely, juicy character and plenty of ripe fruit and chocolate undertones. It’s rich and layered. Flavorful. More concentration than the 2018.

The Wine Cellar Insider

90-92 / 100

byJeff Levethe6/10/2020

Floral, earthy and smoky, with the addition of licorice and vanilla, the wine is medium-bodied, fresh, sweet and juicy, with layers of ripe, dark plums, cherries and cocoa. Soft and silky, with richness and approachability, this 100% Merlot wine lingers with all its freshness and fruit in the finish. 90-92 Pts

Jean-Marc QUARIN

86 / 100

byJean-Marc Quarinthe5/20/2020

14,75