2020 Chateau Pavie Macquin

A blend of 78% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon. Superb colour featuring an impenetrable inky black heart along with a very deep black dark red hue. Potent aromas of ripe blackcurrant, black cherry and liquorice inundate the olfactory senses followed by some vanillin cedar, subtle scorched earth, dried herb and spice notes. Extravagantly rich, fleshy textured and full bodied yet energetic the palate is saturated in a tidal wave of opulent blackcurrant, liquorice and black cherry fruit which largely obscures the ripe chewy tannin structure. Vanillin cedar, traces of dark chocolate, scorched earth, dried herbs and spicy tobacco elements lie underneath. Magnificent concentration and power concluding exceptionally long, deep and remarkably fresh.
Drink over the next 10-15 years.
Alc. 14.5%

Other Reviews....
The 2020 Pavie Macquin is performing well in bottle, unwinding in the glass with aromas of sweet raspberries and cherries mingled with notions of orange zest, violets, spices, bay leaf and vine smoke. Medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, it's deep and fleshy, its ample core of fruit framed by youthfully firm, chalky tannins. As usual, it's more structured than Larcis Ducasse, and it remains a bottling that will demand some patience, even if the Thienpont team have subtly eased off on extraction over the last few vintages, a welcome trend that I hope will be pushed further. Drink 2030-2050.
95+ points
William Kelley – Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate

The 2020 Pavie Macquin is sensational. Rich, dark and explosive, the 2020 balances the natural richness that is such a signature of the estate with a level of energy and vibrancy I have not seen here in the recent past. The result is a towering, imposing Pavie Macquin that hugely delivers. In this vintage, regisseur Nicolas Thienpont did not use the Cabernet Sauvignon, so the blend is 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, with the Franc lending aromatic presence, energy and depth. What a total knock out! Drink 2028-2045.
100 points
Antonio Galloni - Vinous

I have never had a Pavie Macquin like this. It’s so fresh and vivid with black cherry, currant and raspberry character, as well as citrus. Some mineral and spice. Salt, too. The palate is full and linear with a verticality that takes you so deep and long. Endless. Transparent. Drink after 2028.
98 points
James Suckling

The dense purple-hued 2020 Château Pavie Macquin checks in as a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc from yields of 31 hectoliters per hectare and a selection of 85% of the production. Incredibly pure cassis and blueberry fruits as well as complex spring flowers, liquid violets, white truffle, and a liqueur of limestone-like minerality define the aromatics, and it's medium to full-bodied on the palate, with ultra-fine tannins, the vintage's pure, focused, structured profile, and a great finish. As in most vintages, this beauty is not for instant gratification and needs 7-8 years, if not a decade of cellaring to show its potential. It's another true vin de garde from the team of Nicolas Thienpont (Stéphane Derenoncourt also consults) that readers will love to have in their cellar. Drink 2030-2065.
96+ points
Jeb Dunnuck

Inky in color, with dark purple accents, the wine explodes with flowers, incense, licorice, black fruit and touches of blueberries. Rich, intense, flamboyant, sensuous and silky, this hits all your pleasure buttons simultaneously. The wine paints your palate with layers of decadently ripe fruit that is simultaneously sweet, fresh and dense. The seamless finish does not quit. Instead it builds and expands, growing in intensity and complexity. This is going to be stunning with a decade or so of aging.
96-98 points
Jeff Leve - The Wine Cellar Insider