PETIT CLOS
2017 Casa Lapostolle
This is so delicious with blackcurrants, spice, sweet tobacco, lavender and roses. Full-bodied, tight and very polished with gorgeous texture and finesse. Shows tannin tension at the end. A blend of mostly cabernet sauvignon, the rest cabernet franc. Better after 2022. Rating: 96 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Sept 2020)
* 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 second wine, in the Bordeaux sense, the 2017 Le Petit Clos has a different blend from the grand vin, in this case 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Carmenere, 9% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot and is quite different every year. It fermented in 7,500-liter oak vats with indigenous yeasts and a four- to five-week maceration followed by malolactic in new barriques. It matured in new French barriques for six months and spent the next 16 months in first, second and third use French oak barrels. I found a lot less influence from the oak here than in the "grand vin" and a more classical profile with dominance of the Cabernet Sauvignon—ripe without excess, powerful and concentrated but with very good balance. It's quite approachable even when it feels quite youthful; the tannins are round, and the wine is neat and velvety with some creaminess. It has an elegant profile within the powerful character of the vintage. It surpassed my expectations, and I find it every bit as good as the 2016. 72,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in October 2019. This has only been produced since 2014 Rating: 93 Luis Gutierrez, www.robertparker.com (Aug 2020)
Le Petit Clos is the second wine of Clos Apalta, it even comes from the same vineyard as the 'Grand Vin', and benefits from the exact same care both in the vineyard and in the chai. However, this is a very different expression of the place - with a Cabernet Sauvignon dominant blend it is a completely individual style and is totally delicious!. Organically certified this little sister is a superbly attractive wine - one of our favourites in a tasting of all these new releases - and also, refreshingly, it is one of the most well-priced. Excellent value and totally joyous.L&S (Sept 2020)
Casa Lapostolle
The Marnier Lapostolle family is French, and they are the owners of the liqueur Grand Marnier and owners of Chateau de Sancerre in Loire Valley founded Lapostolle in 1994 with the ambition to create world-class wines by combining the superb terroir of Chile with their French winemaking philosophy.
The Clos Apalta winery is the jewel in the crown. It is 170 kilometres south-west of Santiago in the Colchagua Valley. The vineyard is in a horseshoe shape, and high surrounding hills block the sun in both morning and evening, while the river Tinguiririca adds a further cooling effect on the other side, so that the grapes here ripen slowly and evenly. This wine is possibly the absolute pinnacle of Carmenère, on which is is largely based.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those on 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' (excluding duty paid and VAT).
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment to buy wines on release, as long as the release price sits within the upper and lower price bands set by you on the pre-order form. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability but providing this firm commitment to buy effectively gives you priority and is a good idea for the most desirable wines.
Wines listed on the website can be ordered in the usual way via the website wishlist order form. You can also send orders directly to our private client team via email. Please note that, for the most sought after wines, priority will be given to those who ordered the same wines last year and to those that have pre-ordered.
You can register your interest via the online wishlist form, by emailing privateclients@leaandsandeman.co.uk, or by calling 020 7221 1982. All wishlist requests are subject to availability and final confirmation. Inevitably, some wines will have to be allocated but please do not let that deter you from asking. We will do our best to satisfy all requests.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date.
Invoices are raised at in bond prices. Duty and VAT invoices will be raised on request when the wines land in the UK.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or bank transfer. We reserve the right to levy a dunning charge of 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (at 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 in bond deliveries are free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1,000. Orders below this total will be charged at £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchase from this offer, not a per-case charge. Please inform us of in bond delivery addresses and account details at the time of ordering.
- If the wines are required duty paid we will issue invoices at prevailing rate of duty and VAT when the wines arrive in the UK.
- The wines will become available by the end of the year and should be shipped very early next year.