PAVILLON BLANC
2013 du Château Margaux
Pale, gold-tinged straw. Clean, fresh aromas of apricot, gooseberry and green fig, with a distinct suggestion of exotic fruits. Concentrated and full, showing impressive volume for the year. Lively, integrated acidity gives the wine very good life in the mouth and extends the bright gooseberry and kiwi flavors on the back end. Rating: 90-93 Ian d'Agata - Stephen Tanzer website (May 2014)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
Made, as it always is, with 100% Sauvignon Blanc, this was far easier to vinify than the reds at Château Margaux. It’s a sappy, smoky, reductive style, with notes of pink grapefruit and smoked lemons, tangy acidity and a long, tapering finish. 2014-20 Rating: 93 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (May 2014)
The yield was a tiny 25 hl/ha. 13% alcohol. They finished the harvest before the botrytis attacked. Very aromatic indeed with concentrated, zestiness and superb, sour lime notes. This is a very clever Pavillon and I love the lower alcohol which balances the wine so much better than the 15% alcohol vintages. They only used 40% of the crop. Rating: 18+ Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Apr 2014)
Bracing, lively, mouthwatering verbena, thyme and white asparagus notes show crackling mâche and chive notes through the finish, with a flicker of sel gris. Not as much of a rapier as the 2011, but it’s close. Rating: 92–95 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2014)
Silver-pale, lovely bouquet of wild irises. Vineyard dominating the 100% Sauvignon fruit, crisp, floral, perfectly balanced. Drink: 2015-2020. Rating: 17.5 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2014)
The Pavillon Blanc was picked from 19 to 27 September, which Paul Pontallier mentioned was before the botrytis hit. The blend has not physically been made although the sample is representative of the final blend. They key to its success is that being 100% Sauvignon Blanc, this grape variety is less prone to rot. It has a delicate bouquet with gooseberry and grapefruit scents, a hint of gravel in the background. The palate is well balanced with fine acidity. It is perhaps not the most complex Pavillon Blanc I have tasted, although it has great persistency in the mouth. Rating: 91-93 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2014)
Lemon, grapefruit, mint, crushed rocks and slate wrap around the palate in the 2013 Pavillon Blanc, a wine that deftly balances bright, focused aromatics with gorgeous textural finesse, all supported by beams of intense, vibrant salinity. The Pavillon Blanc is a drop-dead gorgeous white with tons of potential. Sadly, only 40% of the crop made it into the bottle. Rating: 93-95 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2014)
A tangy, lively white from Margaux with sliced-lemon, citrus-skin and grapefruit character. Full body with a solid core of fruit and a long, long finish. So expressive and lively. 100% sauvignon blanc. Rating: 95-96 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2014)
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.