CHÂTEAU MALESCASSE
2018 Cru Bourgeois Haut Médoc
Pretty floral nose. The palate is full and weighty. Quiet on the flavour front. Tidy structure. All as it should be to produce a fine claret. Drinking range: 2021 - 2029L&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.
A fine-tannined red with berry, currant and green-bark undertones. It’s medium-bodied with a bright finish. Very fine. Drinking range: 2021 - Rating: 92 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Jan 2021)
A seriously good Haut-Médoc, the 2018 Château Malescasse checks in as a 60/40 split of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (they’ve replanted portions of the their vineyard and this will be more Cabernet-dominated in the future). This deeply colored effort offers an impressive bouquet of ripe blackcurrants and black cherry fruits as well as notes of dark chocolate, crushed rock, and earth. Powerful, medium-bodied, concentrated, and structured, it has plenty to love but is going to need 3-5 years of bottle age. Rating: 89-92 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (May 2019)
So dark there is almost no rim. Dry, the texture of very dark chocolate but not its flavour. Seems to be all tannin and no flesh. Very, very dry. Terribly hard work. Drinking range: 2023 - 2029 Rating: 14.5 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2019)
The deep garnet-purple colored 2018 Malescasse displays exuberant notes of warm cassis, redcurrant jelly, blackberry tart and bay leaves with hints of lavender and menthol. Full-bodied and chock-full of expressive black fruits, it has a firm, grainy texture and just enough freshness, finishing with a minty kick. Rating: 88-90 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (Apr 2019)
The ripe merlot in this, which is 65 per cent, gives this wine lift and richness. Full, chewy and flavorful. Chocolate undertones and hazelnuts to the blue fruit. Rating: 93-94 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2019)
A blend which is predominantly Merlot, with Cabernet Sauvignon for balance and a touch of Petit Verdot, this barrel sample presents a nose of pure, fresh and sweet black cherries, dusted with black pepper nuances. There follows a charming palate with a little grippy substance, supple, open and quite relaxed. There is a fine bed of tightly knit tannins at its heart, grippy and certainly substantial, with bright acidity lending the palate a sense of freshness, although it is a touch loose through the middle which allows the structure to show too readily here. And I see a lot of tannic grip on the finish. All the same, a nice result for this château. Rating: 90-92 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2019)
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.