CHÂTEAU D'ARMAILHAC
2018 5ème Cru Classé Pauillac
Much less dense and decadent than the Clerc Milon. There is a cool crunch to the blackberry fruit and an attractive herbal character on the nose. The tannins are certainly more obvious on the finish but there is good definition and lovely flow. It's certainly not as grand as the Clerc but arguably it has more classic claret character. Another excellent 2018 from the Mouton stable. Drinking range: 2025 - 2035L&S (Apr 2019)
* 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.
Complex aromas of blackcurrant, black olive, clove, oyster shell, pencil lead and tobacco. It’s full-bodied with firm, tightly knit tannins. Concentrated and focused with a very long, spice and mineral finish. Fantastic bottle. Try from 2026. Rating: 95 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Feb 2021)
The core of ripe cassis, plum sauce and raspberry purée flavors have a succulent feel, while licorice snap, graphite and singed alder notes play along the edges. Nice glycerine feel through the focused and fine-grained finish. Tempting now, but time will bring more nuance. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Drinking range: 2022 - 2035 Rating: 93 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Jan 2021)
Deeply colored, the 2018 Château D'Armailhac is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and the rest Petit Verdot brought up in 40% new barrels. Cassis, hints of blue fruits, graphite, charcoal, and spicy oak notes all emerge from this deeply colored effort. Rich and full-bodied on the palate, it offers ripe, present tannins, terrific freshness, and a great finish. Rating: 92-94 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (May 2019)
The 2018 D'Armailhac (14.5% alcohol) is composed of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot, harvested September 12 to October 3. Deep garnet-purple colored, it reveals a very fruity nose of crushed blackberries, warm black cherries and mulberries plus hints of potpourri, spice cake and pencil shavings. Full-bodied, the decadent palate delivers loads of black berry layers and a firm, grainy frame with underlying freshness and an earthy finish. Wonderfully opulent D’Armailhac! Rating: 91-93 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (Apr 2019)
Black core. Scented with cassis and cassis leaf, lightly cedary. (This last is, unusually, a rare descriptor in this vintage.) Aromatic but not as much as Duhart-Milon tasted just after. Very tannic and chewy, dense, compact and telling you to stay away but not lacking fruit in the middle and the aroma is extremely inviting. Needs time to unfurl. Drinking range: 2028 - 2038 Rating: 16.5+ Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2019)
A soft and generous red with plum, tobacco and currant character and a delicious, full body and brightness. Juicy. Attractive, earthy aftertaste. Layered and dense. Rating: 93-94 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2019)
This is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot, picked between September 12th starting with the Merlots, and finishing on October 3rd with the last of the Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. The yield was 32 hl/ha. Its sorting included optical technology. The alcohol in the barrel sample presented is declared to be 14%. It has a dark, concentrated and very confident nose, rich in elegantly poised dark cherry fruits, with a dry, rich and savoury edge. The palate is elegant and creamed, very polished, very rich, with dark veins of fruit swirled here with touches of oak, all very confidently integrated. This is very impressive, being well composed, energetic, harmonious and yet peppery and spiced. Long and refined in the finish, this has to be the best showing from d'Armailhac in many years. There are themes of flavour and texture, not least that elegant composition, that tie this in style to Mouton. Very well done indeed. Tasted twice. The élevage will be in 50% new and 50% second-fill oak. Rating: 94-96 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2019)
With over half Cabernet Sauvignon, this is a rich and juicy wine that is finely structured and shows a touch of integrated toasty spice. It shows a good balance of oak and fruit on the finish. Rating: 93 Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast www.winemag.com (Apr 2019)
Château d'Armailhac
Château d’Armailhac, which has had more names than it has needed over the years (having been Château d’Armailhacq, Château Mouton-d’Armailhacq, Château Mouton-Baron-Philippe, Château Mouton-Baronne-Philippe finally, Château d’Armailhac), was originally part of a larger Pauillac estate owned by the Marquis de Ségur. This was sold off in three lots, which became Château’s Pontet-Canet, d’Armailhac and Mouton-Rothschild. It came into common ownership with its famous neighbour to the north in 1933 when Baron Philippe de Rothschild bought the estate. There are 50ha under vine, which are planted to just under 60% Cabernet Sauvignon with roughly 20% each of Cabernet Franc and Merlot, and a tiny amount of Petit Verdot. The wines spend around 16 months in barrique, about 30% new oak with rest being old barrels from Château Mouton Rothschild. The wines are, generally, softer than other wines from Pauillac or other wines in the Rothschild portfolio, but amongst the best value. The relatively high proportions of Merlot and Cabernet Franc make d’Armailhac a good bet in lesser vintages too.
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 contact our private client team via email or on 020 7018 0187.
Ordering
Prices are all in bond by the case size stated.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment to buy wines on release, as long as the release price is 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.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of email confirmation. Pre-orders are not binding if the release price is above your upper price band.
Invoices are all raised at the in bond price (excluding any duty and VAT) which will become payable at the prevailing rates when the wines arrive in the UK, should you wish to take duty paid delivery.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or bank transfer. We regret we cannot accept credit cards for en primeur orders. We reserve the right to apply 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 deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £500. Orders below this total will be charged an administration and handling fee of £16.50+ VAT when invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery of 2024 Bordeaux bought en primeur is expected during 2027. Delivery dates may vary as wines are shipped from Bordeaux at different times.
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). Immediate payment of invoices is then required by cash, cheque, debit card or bank transfer. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option but please note that confirmed orders are still binding even if the final invoice has not yet been issued.
Please specify on your wishlist order form where you would like the wines shipped on arrival in the UK. If this is to a third-party bonded warehouse, please specify the relevant account details. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue a second invoice for duty and VAT at the prevailing rate when the wines are available for delivery.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the format you want. While most of our listings are for 75cl bottles, we can source wines in any format that is offered by the Château. Please note that format requests cannot be changed once wines have been invoiced. Additional charges for special formats do apply and are as follows:-
- +£18.00 per case of 12 half-bottles
- +£30.00 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£7.50 per case of 3 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£11.00 per case of 6 Magnums
- +£45.00 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£60.00 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.
Storage Options:
Wines bought en primeur won't arrive in the UK until 2027. If you do not wish to take home delivery at that point, you may wish to consider where you would like the wines shipped. Lea & Sandeman offers duty paid and in bond storage through a dedicated storage company called Elephant Storage. For more details on the terms and fees associated with storage please go to our Storage Homepage or contact our private client team for more information.