CHÂTEAU BEAU-SÉJOUR BÉCOT
2020 1er Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion
Market Insight: There are still no scores for the 2019 Beau-Séjour Becot, it will be interested what Thomas Duclos, along with Juliette and Julien can produce now that they're fully in control. One to watch.L&S (May 2021)
* 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 2020 Beau-Sejour Becot is a dense, powerful wine. A rush of black cherry, plum, chocolate, new leather, licorice, spice and sweet oak builds as this towering, vertically explosive Saint-Émilion opens in the glass. This is an especially broad, expansive Saint-Émilion, much of that attributable to the clay in these soils. The 2020 is magnificent in its intensity and overall volume. Superb. Drinking range: 2028 - 2050 Rating: 97 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2023)
Very expressive, with cassis, cherry puree and plum pâte de fruit notes leaping to the fore with good energy, while violet, red tea, savory and sanguine details add range and guile through the stylish finish. It's not easy to capture such freshness in this vintage like this version does. Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drinking range: 2026 - 2038 Rating: 94 The Wine Spectator, www.winespectator.com (Dec 2022)
The 2020 Beau-Séjour Bécot was picked 8 September until 30 September, but mostly between 8-12 September, around 70% of the production. It is one of the highest percentages of Merlot in recent years partly due to restructuring of the vineyard and also higher yields (47-48hl/ha) compared to the Cabernets. With no SO2 used during fermentation and matured in 55% new oak (20hl Stockinger and Taransaud foudres and regular barriques) it is tightly wound on the nose, so I afforded the sample an hour to really open. It offers predominantly red berry fruit, wild mint and traces of dried honey, more floral scents emerging, violet and iris flower blossoming with time in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, very well judged acidity, a very graceful and unpretentious Saint-Émilion, harmonious with a touch of white pepper enhancing the precise finish. This is a classically styled Beau-Séjour Bécot that conveys a brooding intensity, so I would give it several years in the cellar. Drinking range: 2028 - 2048 Rating: 92-94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2021)
The vivid purple-hued 2020 Château Beau-Séjour Bécot is another ethereal, incredibly perfumed, mineral-laced Saint-Emilion, which is common from wines from the upper, limestone plateau. Gorgeous cassis and black cherry fruits as well as floral notes, violets, and chalky minerality all define the nose, and it’s medium-bodied, has wonderfulness and purity, and reveals a liqueur of rocks-like minerality on the finish. It’s another thrillingly complete wine from this team that shines for its purity, elegance, and complexity. Rating: 94-96 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (May 2021)
Displaying a deep purple-black color, the 2020 Beau-Sejour Becot prances out of the glass with showy scents of preserved plums, chocolate-covered cherries, wild blueberries and raspberry preserves, plus suggestions of rose oil, ground cloves and licorice. The elegantly crafted, medium-bodied palate shimmers with energy, offering a fantastic intensity of crunchy red and black fruits, supported by fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing long and perfumed. Simply stunning. Drinking range: 2026 - 2050 Rating: 95 - 97+ Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (May 2021)
Velvety rich deep blue fruits, this is powerful and measured, fruit-forward and yet subtle, layered blueberry and raspberry with smoked almonds and mocha on the finish. Sleek and finessed fruit flavours, a sense of forward motion from beginning to end and a burst of freshly-grated minerality on the finish. Extremely good quality. This is the second to last vintage in the new cellar, before building a new cellar for 2023 vintage. They have done a lot of work in the vineyards studying the terroir to understand how smaller sectors and zones within each plot reacts, and this work of studying the plots will help to inform the new cellar. Harvest September 8th to September 29th. 3.5ph. A yield of 42hl/ha. 16 months ageing in 65% new oak barrel, 35% in vats, amphoras and 20hl oak tanks. Thomas Duclos consultant. Drinking range: 2028 - 2042 Rating: 95 Jane Anson, Decanter (May 2021)
Absolute expression of place with stony, chalky notes superimposed over the berry fruit. Lovely texture of tannin, the palate fine, fresh, fruity and persistent. Really elegant and digeste. Reinforces the change of style seen since 2017. Drinking range: 2027 - 2045 Rating: 17+ James Lawther MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2021)
Château Beau-Séjour Bécot
Château Beau Séjour Bécot sits on the slopes above Château Angelus, half a mile west of the town of St Emilion. It was once part of a larger Château Beauséjour estate which was owned by the de Carle family who owned Château Figeac. After a couple of changes of ownership, the estate was divided in 1869 between the children of Pierre-Paulin Ducarpe - his daughter's share became Château Beauséjour-Duffau-Lagarosse, whilst his son's, eventually, became Château Beau Séjour Bécot. The Bécot part of the name only became attached in 1969 when Michel Bécot bought the estate, and the Bécot family own it to this day. The controversial addition to Beau Séjour Bécot of some other vineyards owned by the Bécot family, an addition which nearly doubled the size of the estate, led to its demotion from Premier Grand Cru Classé status to "only" Grand Cru Classé status in 1979. Relentless work to prove that the new larger estate was as good, if not better, than before paid off in 1996 when Château Beau Séjour Bécot was re-elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé status. The vineyards are a fairly typical mix of 70% Merlot and 24% Cabernet Franc with a small quantity of Cabernet Sauvignon. Maturation is in mostly new oak.
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.