CHÂTEAU GRAND MAYNE
2020 Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion
Damson, vibrant black cherry, cassis puree, cocoa bean and liqourice. This is concentrated, with shoulders to the tannins, and an appealing purity of fruit delivery. 15ha, Michel Rolland consltant, owned by Jean-Antoine Nony, now joined by his brother Damien. 41hl/ha yield, 50% new oak for ageing. Drinking range: 2024 - 2038 Rating: 93 Jane Anson, Decanter (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 2020 Grand Mayne has a very enticing, pure bouquet that unfolds wonderfully in the glass, with ebullient raspberry and wild strawberry fruit, orange pith and subtle tobacco scents. Well-defined and focused. The palate is medium-bodied with an impressive backbone. There's a soupçon of creaminess in the second half with a precise, lightly spiced and persistent finish that leaves you wanting more. There's no excuse not to have a few bottles tucked away in your cellar. Drinking range: 2028 - 2050 Rating: 94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 2023)
This is extremely tough and sinewy and the finish is loaded with dried out oak and unripe skin tannin. There is little or no joy to be found here. Rating: 15+? Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Jun 2021)
The 2020 Grand Mayne is a powerful, tannic wine. It will be interesting to see if the tannins soften. Even in the early going, the 2020 has a lot of promise. Dark red cherry, plum, spice, new leather, cedar, mint, rose petal and mocha come to life with a bit of time. The 2020 is a gorgeous wine. Drinking range: 2025 - 2045 Rating: 92-94 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jun 2021)
The 2020 Grand Mayne is focused and delineated on a nose that offers plenty of finely chiseled scents of black cherry, bilberry, crushed rock and incense, opulent but beautifully controlled. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent ripe black fruit on the entry, and laced with graphite, touches of tobacco and minerals. From beginning to end, this 2020 displays wonderful tension, and there is a sense of refinement on the finish that I think has only manifested in vintages of Grand Mayne over the last 5–6 years. This delivers, or perhaps overdelivers considering the price. Drinking range: 2028 - 2050 Rating: 93-95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2021)
Always a solid wine, the 2020 Château Grand Mayne should be outstanding, if not even better. Offering a medium to full-bodied, ripe, textured style as well as lots of plum and darker fruits, it has terrific purity, building tannins, and a great mid-palate. I was able to taste this from multiple bottles, all showing a good mix of richness and freshness, and if anything, I’m being conservative with the rating. Rating: 91-93 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (May 2021)
Always a big wine; this is a site that encourages big tannins and once you embrace that quality, you willingly submit to the knitted-down cassis and bilberry fruits. Touches of bitter coffee as it opens, this is powerful but enjoyable and does a good job of pulling up at the last minute, offering crushed stone and juice. A yield of 41hl/ha, 50% new oak for ageing. Drinking range: 2028 - 2040 Rating: 93 Jane Anson, Decanter (May 2021)
74% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Franc, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. Firm and muscular with a solid tannic frame. Builds gradually to a persistent finish. Fruit present but aromatically less captivating – berry fruit with a hint of mint and a charry note from the oak. Drinking range: 2027 - 2040 Rating: 16+ James Lawther MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2021)
Château Grand Mayne
A mayne is a large house surrounded by an estate, something which adequately describes Château Grand Mayne, the “grand” bit presumably referring to a time when the estate ran to 250ha with 62ha of vineyard. This was after the Laveau family, who owned Grand Mayne for two and half centuries at least, had purchased Château Soutard to add to their domain. It wasn’t to last, and gradually the estate was divided and sold off and now amounts to 21ha, 1.5km from St Emilion village at the foot of the plateau. Since 1934, Château Grand Mayne has been owned by the Nony family. The vineyards are planted with 76% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc and 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, and are around 30 years old. Of the non-classified estates of St Emilion, Château Grand Mayne is generally accounted as one of the best.
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.