Tasted on multiple occasions, the 2021 Château Pavie Macquin is a more forward, textured, charming wine from this estate that still has plenty of classic Pavie Macquin class, freshness, and minerality, which is the hallmark of this terroir. Coming from a cooler site just above Château Pavie, the 2021 is a blend of 79% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon, from a selection of 80% of the production. Harvest here started on the 4th of October for the Merlot and finished on the 19th of October for the Cabernet, and the wine spent 30-35 days on skins in a mix of open top wood and concrete tanks and is currently resting in 50% new French oak barrels. Its deep purple hue is followed by terrific aromatics of blue fruits, violets, and chalky minerality, and it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, ripe, rounded tannins, good mid-palate depth, and a great finish. This cuvée always needs bottle age, but I suspect this will be one of the more approachable vintages for this wine.

The 2021 Pavie Macquin is a rich, heady wine, as it typically is. Dark red fruit, leather, smoke, licorice, mocha and espresso build nicely in the glass. The tannins are a bit firmer than they usually are, but there's plenty of creaminess and texture lurking beneath. The 2021 needs time to fully come together. In some tastings it was a bit austere, while in other moments, the trademark Pavie-Macquin sensuality was more in evidence. Tasted three times.