PAVILLON BLANC
2014 du Château Margaux
Paul Pontallier, says that a cool August is crucial in the making of a really great white in Margaux - if it is too hot the fruit ripens too quickly and the acidity is lost. 2014 gave good conditions for this - with almost three long, cool, gloomy weeks in August - ripeness came later with the sunshine in September, but the freshness was retained. They had to do a lot of work in the vineyards too - losing 65% of the crop - result is a beautifully balanced, concentrated wine with great, pert fruit extract and yet light on its toes with minerality and perky acidity keeping a lovely flow and feel in the mouth, impressive stuff. Rating: 94 L&S (Apr 2015)
* 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.
The 2014 Pavillon Blanc de Château Margaux is just a bit anonymous on the nose, despite encouragement. The palate is sharp on the entry, very edgy and sharp, verging on sour lemon mixed with lime and peach towards the finish. This is one of the few Bordeaux dry whites that improved with aeration and I ended up giving a higher score. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2018 - 2026 Rating: 92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Mar 2018)
Lemon peel, white flowers, mint and slate are some of the many notes that are woven throughout the 2014 Pavillon Blanc. The interplay of bright, citrus-driven flavors and palate texture is compelling. This is the first vintage in which a portion of the Blanc was aged in 500-liter barrels, a format that helps preserve freshness and tension. In early 2015, I thought the Pavillon Blanc could be the most compelling of Margaux's 2014s. I still feel the same way. Drinking range: 2020 - 2044 Rating: 96 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2017)
The Pavillon Blanc de Margaux 2014 was elevated by a cool August that captured the acidity and the clement conditions in September. “It has the same opulence as 2011 and the freshness of 2012, but there is less quantity,” remarked Paul Pontallier. It has a fragrant bouquet with scents of honeysuckle, orange blossom and a fresh sprig of mint. The palate is ripe and focused on the entry, a white Bordeaux underpinned by a fine line of acidity, just a dash of lemongrass emerging towards the finish and lending spice. There is an endearing sense of harmony here. Mon. Pontallier is right to enthuse about this Pavillon Blanc, one of the finest in recent years. Drinking range: 2018 - 2030 Rating: 91-93 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2015)
Very floral and quite exotic fruit refreshed by high natural acidity. 'I'm blown away by this wine,' said MD Paul Pontallier. (Highly recommended Margaux, Decanter.) Drinking range: 2017 - 2024 Rating: 91 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2015)
The 2014 Pavillon Blanc boasts incredible textural depth and resonance, largely the result of a hot September that concentrated the grapes. Lemon oil, white flowers, mint and lime meld together in an unusually viscous, creamy Pavillon Blanc built on pure texture and a real sense of phenolic weight. This is a dazzling Pavillon Blanc that marries power and freshness. Rating: 93-96 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2015)
Pale gold. Heady, intense, green fruit aromas. Great tingle and golden richness on the palate. Then sufficient weight for the acidity. Quite tight on the end. Great delicacy. Although it finishes a little suddenly with a certain chewy chalkiness. Very bright fruit. Massive piercing acidity. Needs time. Top-quality tannins and oak. Drinking range: 2019 - 2026 Rating: 17.5 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2015)
Sauvignon Blanc 100% The citrus mix on the nose is fresh fragrant and the palate starts with lime and grapefruit. The mid palate has peach and apricot richness generous complex. At the back citrus refreshes a floral mix, fragrance and charm yet tropical fruits on the finish give richness the fruit lingering on the long finish. Drinking range: 2016 - 2026 Rating: 94-97 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (Apr 2015)
"Our best white of the last 10 years," is how Paul Pontallier describes this varietal Sauvignon Blanc, made with no malolactic and 30% new oak. It's certainly one of the dry whites of the vintage: focused, chalky and pithy with notes of pink grapefruit, smoky oak and a tangy, lingering finish. (One of Tim's Top 10 Dry Whites.) Drinking range: 2015 - 2025 Rating: 95 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2015)
This is yet again a wonderful white with minerals, lemon rind, white pepper and stones. Even chalky. Peach stones, too. Full-bodied yet compacted and tight. Great length. Savory, salty and serious. Rating: 97-98 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Mar 2015)
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.