CLOS L'ÉGLISE
2019 Pomerol
The 2019 Clos l'Eglise has an attractive nose with blackberry, soy and cracked black pepper, a little earthier than its peers. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, good depth and grip. Slightly peppery towards the finish, it needs bottle age to demonstrate the complexity and precision it displayed after bottling. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting. Drinking range: 2025 - 2040 Rating: 91 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 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.
The 2019 Clos l'Eglise is beautifully layered and complete. Scents of dark cherry, plum, chocolate and licorice all build effortlessly. This mid-weight yet potent, Pomerol is nuanced and super-expressive, with gorgeous silkiness on the long finish to keep things in balance. It is a terrific effort from Hélène Garcin-Lévêque and Patrice Lévêque. Drinking range: 2027 - 2039 Rating: 94 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2022)
The 2019 Clos l’Eglise has a beautiful bouquet of vivacious red berry fruit and suggestions of truffle and salted licorice, very focused and vibrant and gaining intensity with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy, saturated tannins, a fine bead of acidity, and hints of licorice furnishing the finish. There is a sense of completeness that I adore. An outstanding Pomerol. Drinking range: 2025 - 2040 Rating: 95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 2022)
Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2019 Clos l'Eglise slowly unfurls to reveal wonderfully fragrant scents of red roses, candied violets, Sichuan pepper, hoisin and garrigue over a core of blackberry preserves, stewed plum and spice cake with a waft of cast-iron pan. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegantly played with a well-knit backbone of ripe, grainy tannins and seamless freshness supporting the fragrant layers, finishing long and mineral laced. Rating: 93-95 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (Jun 2020)
The 2019 Clos l'Eglise offers ripe black cherries, wild strawberry, hints of liquorice and marmalade on the nose, well-defined, quite extravagant but not excessive. It reflects the growing season. The palate is sweet and caressing in texture on the entry thanks to the saturated tannins. Good depth here, that liquorice note reappearing towards the finish that exerts a gentle grip, then delivers a long spicy aftertaste. Great potential, a Pomerol that should give 20-30 years of drinking pleasure. Drinking range: 2024 - 2045 Rating: 94-96 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Jun 2020)
Clos l'Église
In a region of modest architecture, the high-spired church in Pomerol tends to dominate the sky-line. Gathered around it, a trio of estates trumpet their proximity with their name – Domaine de l’Eglise, Château l’Eglise Clinet and Clos l’Eglise. In fact, l’Eglise Clinet and Clos l’Eglise, separated only by a narrow lane, used to form a single estate until they were divided in inheritance in the latter half of the 19th Century. Clos l’Eglise’s rise to prominence has been rapid, dating from the purchase of the estate in 1997 by Sylviane Garcin-Cathiard who already owned a couple of châteaux in Pessac-Léognan and whose brother is the owner of Château Smith Haut Lafitte. The €12mil. price tag turned heads at the time although, given the continued growth of interest in Pomerol, it now looks like Sylviane got herself a bargain. The 5.8ha of vineyard are planted with 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, and run by Sylvaine's daughter Hélene Garcin, who also runs the family's other properties, Haut Bergey, Branon, Poésia and Barde Haut. The consultant oenoligist since 2015 is Thomas Duclos. The wines are fermented in stainless steel, and aged 16 to 18 months in new barrels. There was a surprising amount of Cabernet Sauvignon at Clos l’Eglise when the family took over, all of which has been done away with. The Clos produces around 1200-1500 bottles per vintage.
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.