CHÂTEAU LE BOSCQ
2020 Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel Saint Estèphe
Blackcurrants, mulberries, balsamic, iodine, cloves and bark on the nose. Firm, polished and mineral, with a medium to full body and finely-knit tannins. Not the most intense but focused. Drink from 2025. Rating: 92 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (May 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 Le Boscq is a very pretty, mid-weight Saint-Estèphe loaded with character. Dried herbs, pipe tobacco, rose petal, mint, scorched earth and gravel are all woven into a core of dark-fleshed fruit. The 2020 is a bit more reserved than it was en primeur, but it remains quite tasty. Drinking range: 2024 - 2032 Rating: 90 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2023)
The 2020 Le Boscq still has that expressive, overtly floral bouquet with bunches of pressed violet infusing the black cherry and boysenberry fruit. Quite powerful and seductive. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, touches of black olive, fine depth with a slightly chewy finish that would benefit from a little more delineation and finesse. But I like this sturdy Saint-Estèphe and it should cellar well for a decade. Drinking range: 2026 - 2042 Rating: 90 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 2023)
55 Cabernet Sauvignon, 38 Merlot, 6 Cabernet Franc, 1 Petit Verdot | 30% new oak for 12 months Le Boscq is rather angular and sinewy in 2020 with hints of lush fruit, but the tannins are definitely in control here. There is a deep sense of Saint-Estèphe minerality here and it gives this wine a powerful stance even though the fruit is not particularly robust. It will certainly take at least a decade for this vintage to mellow. Rating: 16.5+ Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Jun 2021)
The 2020 Le Boscq is wonderfully expressive right out of the gate. Inky dark fruit, charcoal, spice, menthol and licorice are front and center. This juicy, succulent Saint-Estèphe will drink well right away. Drinking range: 2025 - 2035 Rating: 89-91 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jun 2021)
The 2020 Le Boscq presents a perfumed, unusually floral bouquet (for this estate), violet and iris infusing the blackberry and cassis fruit. The palate has a succulent opening featuring plenty of sweet black cherry and strawberry fruit, almost confit-like, though the new oak comes across quite strongly toward the finish. The success of this Saint-Estèphe will depend on how well that oak is assimilated during élevage. Drinking range: 2024 - 2035 Rating: 89-91 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2021)
The 2020 Château Le Boscq offers up a rocking nose that includes lots of blue fruits, violets, and graphite, and it’s one of those wines you can easily identify as Saint-Estèphe in a blind tasting. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, with elegant tannins and good purity, it comes across as slightly modern in style, with plenty of oak, yet I suspect that will integrate once this is in the bottle and it should be a classic, outstanding wine. Rating: 90-92 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (May 2021)
Blackberry, mushroom, bark and ink well on the nose. It’s medium-bodied with firm, slightly austere tannins. Could use a little bit more in the center palate, but pretty length. So should be excellent. Wait and see. Rating: 91-92 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2021)
Château Le Boscq
Château le Boscq sits at the far northern end of Saint Estèphe with it’s fine late 19th Century mansion commanding fine views over the River Gironde, and the southern portions of the vineyard gazing across the Chenal de Calon at Calon-Ségur. Unusually for this part of the Haut-Médoc, the majority of Le Boscq’s vineyard – 60% - is planted with Merlot which accounts for a rounder fleshier style to the wine.
Of note, historically, is that the Barton family owned Château le Boscq before they moved south to Léoville and Langoa in Saint Julien. Since 1995, le Boscq has been in the ownership of Bordeaux négociant and merchant Dourthe.
It was classified ‘Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel’, in the 2020 Cru Bourgeois Classification for Médoc wines. The property has already been awarded HVE level 3 (High Environmental Value), and is working toward organic certification.
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.