91pts Vinous

The 1995 Branaire-Ducru has a generous bouquet that might be a tad riper than the 1996 with blackberry, dark plum, a touch of sage and tobacco all with fine delineation. The palate is more forward than the 1996, a little ripe but I prefer the structure on the 1995. A subtle saline touch on the entry, dusky red-berried fruit with cedar and a touch of tobacco on the finish. Lovely.

91pts Wine Spectator

Currant and black licorice, with a coffee undertone. Plummy. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a long caressing finish. A beauty.

90pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

A beauty in the elegant, restrained, finesse school of winemaking, the dark ruby/purple-colored 1995 Branaire exhibits a floral, cranberry, cherry, and black currant-scented nose intermixed with high quality toasty new oak. Medium-bodied, with excellent definition, supple tannin, and an attractive, alluring personality, this pleasant, measured yet complex wine should drink well young, and keep for two decades.

Winery Notes

Chateau Branaire-Ducru's 120 acres is located in the St. Julien region of France and has such famous neighbors as Cheateau Gruaud-Larose, Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou and Chateau Beychevelle.
The name, given by the former owner Monsieur Ducru, means "beautiful pebbles". One of the main features of the vineyard is its richness in pebbles which contribute to the greatness of so many wines of the Medoc.

Just before the war, the vineyard became run down and many Bordeaux critics felt it no longer deserved its rank as a Second Growth. During the Medoc Classification of 1855, the Chateau was rated as a Fourth Growth. In 1942 the Borie family purchased the vineyard completely revamped the vineyard and it began receiving top ratings amongst the Second Growths. Successive generations of the Borie family oversee all winemaking operations.