CHÂTEAU PRIEURÉ LICHINE
2016 4ème Cru Classé Margaux
Exuberant from the first moment, with an expansive feel through the mid palate, and supple tannins that support the fruit without restricting it. Expect waves of blackberry, cassis, liqourice, smoked earth, campfire, pomegrante, crayon, giving plenty of Left Bank character. A fascinating estate from a terroir point of view, as former owner Alexis Lichine bought small plots from across the appellation when he was building it up from the 4ha that remained when he first bought it. Standing at 78ha today, the vines are divided into five sections around the Margaux appellation, and sub-divided into 150 plots. Étienne Charrier technical director since 2012, Stephane Derenoncourt consultant. Drinking range: 2025 - 2042 Rating: 95 Jane Anson, Decanter (Nov 2023)
* 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.
Complexity, precision, purity of blackberry fruit with a ton of turmeric spice, campfire smoke, bitter black chocolate and slate. This is still extremely young, showcasing energy and fine tannins, and widens through the palate. Still some austerity at this point, and the tannic frame is dominant, it needs the creaminess that is just emerging through the mid palate to really get embedded over the next few years, but the minerality and juice on the finish bodes well for a long life. Harvest September 23 to 19 October. 50% new oak. 48hl/h yield. Stephane Derenoncourt consultant. Rating: 95 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (Jun 2022)
The 2016 Prieuré-Lichine has a compact bouquet of blackberry, raspberry, allspice and light pressed iris scents that are nicely defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, offering fine balance, moderate depth and gentle grip toward the finish, which attenuates when you want it to spread out. Give it some time in bottle. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2040 Rating: 91 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Aug 2020)
The medium ruby-colored 2016 Château Prieuré-Lichine is a touch lean and firm, yet has impressive notes of spring flowers, damp underbrush, and loads of minerality. Possessing both red and black fruit, present tannins, and good balance, it’s a solid, enjoyable effort that would be even better with a touch more flesh. Rating: 88 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Feb 2019)
The 2016 Prieuré-Lichine is all class. Floral, silky and nuanced to the core, the 2016 is a wine of pure and total seduction. Freshly cut flowers, vibrant red fruit and creamy tannins all add to the wine's undeniable allure. In 2016, Prieuré-Lichine is all class, not to mention one of the sleepers of the vintage. Don't miss it! Tasted two times. Drinking range: 2022 - 2041 Rating: 96 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jan 2019)
The 2016 Prieure-Lichine took a little encouragement from the glass, eventually revealing blackberry, blueberry and violet aromas, just a touch of earthiness in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin cloaked in plenty of succulent black fruit tinged with graphite and smoke. I admire the linearity of this classic Margaux, quite persistent in the mouth with satisfying freshness from start to finish. I am sure this will reside at the top of my banded score once in bottle. Drinking range: 2020 - 2035 Rating: 90-92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)
The 2016 Prieuré-Lichine is one of the most beautiful and expressive wines of the year. Dark, sensual and inviting, it possesses remarkable depth and textural richness. All the elements are in the right place. Silky tannins, bright red fruit and soaring, lifted aromatics all contribute to the wine's sensual personality. Consulting winemakers Stéphane Derenoncourt and Julien Lavenu are doing absolutely brilliant work here. The new winery, inaugurated with the 2015 harvest, is giving the team the flexibility to pick and vinify smaller lots, which is one of the reasons quality has improved in recent vintages. The blend is 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. Tasted two times. Rating: 93-96 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)
Rather a sumptuous alluring nose. Mild and sweet on the palate without great drive, but inoffensive certainly. No great length. Drinking range: 2024 - 2036 Rating: 16.5 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2017)
This captures the essence of the vintage, with a mix of dark plum and currant flavors, accented by cherry and raspberry fruit, all backed by energetic, brambly tannins and mouthwatering underlying acidity. Rating: 91-94 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2017)
Layered and rich with plenty of ripe fruit and ripe tannins. Full body, round and chewy tannins and a citrusy finish. Excellent like the 2015. Rating: 93-94 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2017)
This beautiful Margaux might not exceed the 2015 but it is undeniably doing a good job of keeping up. It combines elegance and richness, with extremely well extracted deep fruits and plenty of layers of finesse in the form of charcoal, slate, grilled almonds and cloves. An excellent Prieuré with good ageing potential. Drinking range: 2027 - 2050 Rating: 95 Jane Anson, Decanter (Apr 2017)
Rating: 88 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2017)
The 2016 Prieuré-Lichine has a compact bouquet of blackberry, raspberry, allspice and light pressed iris scents that are nicely defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, offering fine balance, moderate depth and gentle grip toward the finish, which attenuates when you want it to spread out. Give it some time in bottle. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2040 Rating: 91 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Dec 1899)
Château Prieuré Lichine
Margaux Quatrième cru 1855 As the name suggests, the early history of Prieuré-Lichine starts with the Benedictine monks of the Prieuré de Cantenac who assembled, by the 18th Century, quite a reputation for their wine. The Revolution put an end to ecclesiastical ownership, La Prieuré was seized and sold off with much of the vineyard becoming parts of other estates including Château Palmer. A with many Médoc estates, the first half of the 20th Century was a period of decline. By 1951 Château Prieuré-Cantenac was reduced to 11ha of rather sorry vines. Salvation came that year with the estate's purchase by wine writer Alexis Lichine. He renovated the chais and the château, and gradually increased vineyard holdings by buying spare vineyard land from other Margaux estates. Château Prieuré-Lichine is to the east of Cantenac. There are, now, around 70ha of vineyard, somewhat dispersed around the appellation, with 55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot with a small balance of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. The Grand Vin spends 16 months inn wood (55% new).
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.