CHÂTEAU LAFAURIE PEYRAGUEY

2018 1er Cru Classé Sauternes

EN PRIMEUR

Incredible unctuous feel. ToKaji-like viscosity. But the flavour is smart. CLassic Sauternes profile with some burnt sugar on top. Rich and deep but keeps moving. Better vision of noble rot than many. Good, indulgent juice with some depth and impact. L&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.

Subtle nose of quince, lemon zest, orange, spice and some tropical fruit. It’s full-bodied and well balanced, fruity and spicy with a velvety texture. Savory finish with lovely length. Drinking range: 2024 - Rating: 96 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Jan 2021)

The 2018 Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey is a honeyed, tropical effort that has light botrytis, full-bodied richness, a big mid-palate, and a great finish. It’s not the most complex Sauternes out there but it has wonderful purity of fruit. The blend is 95% Sémillon and 5% Sauvignon aging in one-third new French oak. Rating: 93-95 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (May 2019)

A touch of cream/leesy spice on the nose but rather subdued. A hint of those pear aromas that seem to be everywhere in this vintage. Big and bold and intense on the palate, gripping and balanced, spicy on the finish, just slightly rustic in that spiciness. Drinking range: 2023 - 2030 Rating: 16.5 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2019)

You can really see the wild botrytis character in this wine with lots of spice and dried-mushroom character. Full-bodied and intensely sweet palate, yet there’s bright acidity and a spicy finish. Rating: 96-97 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2019)

This is easily one of the best in the line up, sunflower yellow in colour and showing great focus. It has a lovely minerality that rises through the palate and lime notes that give focus to the rich, fleshy texture. This is very good quality and you can see that it’s a flexible wine that would go well with food. It’s perhaps a touch soft on the finish but there's an awful lot to like. A great job from Silvio Denz here. 20% new oak was used. A yield of 10hl/ha. Drinking range: 2022 - 2040 Rating: 95 Jane Anson, Decanter (Apr 2019)

A blend of 92% Semillon and 8% Sauvignon Blanc, this was picked at a yield between 8 and 10 hl/ha, and it has an alcohol of 13.8%. It presents a very classic, polished and pure nose, one laden with sweet white peach and apricot fruit. The palate shows wonderful breadth and confidence, the fruit character matching the nose in terms of its energy, complexity and density, and it is balanced by seams of acidity, minerality and a bitter botrytis character. This has fabulously bright and cleansed finish, the acidity washing the sweet apricot and peach fruits through very nicely. Impressive, very composed and beautifully balanced, with energy too. Tasted three times. The élevage will be in 20% new oak and 80% second-fill oak. Rating: 94-96 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2019)

Sauternes Premier Cru 1855 This was originally a fortification built at least as long ago as the 13th Century. By 1618, it was the home of Sieur Raymond Peyraguey. The vineyard business was developed by the Baron de Pichard, who bought the estate in 1742. Unfortunately for him, he lost his head in the Revolution and his château and vineyards were sold to a M. Lafaurie. The first half of the 19th Century saw Lafaurie-Peyraguey's reputation rise from nearly unknown to being ranked 3rd, behind ChâteauLa Tour Blanche and near neighbour Château d'Yquem in 1855. In 1879 a small portion of the estate was didvided off to become Château Clos Haut-Peyraguey. In 1917, Lafaurie-Peyraguey was bought by Désiré Cordier, who owned it until they sold to the Suez Group in 1984. The 40ha of vineyard are planted with 90% Semillon, 8% Sauvignon Blanc and 2% Muscadelle. The grapes are hand-picked and the wine fermented in wood, before ageing for 18 to 20 months.

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 2022 Bordeaux bought en primeur is expected during 2025. 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 2025. 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.