CHÂTEAU QUINTUS
2020 Grand Cru Saint Emilion
Market Insight: Quintus got its highest score yet in 2019, with a fairly serious 94-96 from both critics. Although it may need to come of age in terms of quality and identity, it appears that this young Haut Brion lead project is starting to move. 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 Quintus is wonderfully promising. Soft contours and generous fruit give it tons of immediate appeal. Blueberry, mocha, lavender, spice and new leather are some of the aromas and flavors that emerge over time. More than anything else, though, Quintus impresses with its harmony. The 2020 is one of the finest vintages I have tasted here. Drinking range: 2028 - 2040 Rating: 92-94 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jun 2021)
The 2020 Quintus is very delineated and focused on the nose, offering ebullient black cherries and raspberry fruit, crushed stone and a subtle marine element that develops with aeration; great energy here. The palate is medium-bodied with lithe tannins, a perfect line of acidity and just a slight bitterness that imparts the necessary tension and sapidity on the finish. This is a very suave Saint-Émilion that will be difficult to resist in its youth. Drinking range: 2028 - 2045 Rating: 92-94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2021)
A big, velvety textured wine, especially in the vintage, the 2020 Château Quintus offers a gorgeous array of pure crème de cassis and black raspberry fruits as well as leafy herbs, graphite, and chocolate. These all carry to a full-bodied Saint-Emilion with a round, mouth-filling texture, ripe tannins, and a great finish. This estate has been firing on all cylinders of late, and this should be in the same realm as the 2016, 2018, and I suspect, the 2019. Rating: 94-96 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (May 2021)
Displaying a deep purple-black color, it leaps from the glass with bold notes of crushed blackberries, boysenberries and stewed plums, plus suggestions of chocolate mint, clove oil, lilacs and star anise. The full-bodied palate is densely laden with rich black fruits and floral accents, framed by well-balanced acidity and finely grained tannins, finishing with great length and impressive energy. Judging from this barrel sample, this is the finest, most complex and complete Quintus yet – bravo! Drinking range: 2026 - 2050 Rating: 95-97 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (May 2021)
Exuberant and confident, with powerful damson and black cherry fruit flavours on the nose. Chocolate and liquorice run through the palate from beginning to end, and this is full of signature St-Emilion glamour. It has a round and supple texture through the mid palate, but the alcohol hides some of the limestone nuance at this point - it will no doubt emerge more clearly with 8 to 10 years in bottle. Harvest 11th September for the Merlot grapes and 23rd September for the Cabernet Franc. Drinking range: 2029 - 2044 Rating: 93 Jane Anson, Decanter (May 2021)
Like the second wine, Le Dragon, this is a monolithic wine with a stern character and a pleasant violet-themed perfume. The fruit is calm, dry and centred but there is little obvious exoticism or flair. A touch closed and firm, with a powerful core of alcohol under the bonnet, I imagine that we will need to wait for a decade for this wine to begin to open up and soften out and the oak, while not too pungent, is certainly preventing more fragrant tones from expressing themselves. Tense but worth waiting for, this is a fascinating wine and one which will be sure to evolve slowly and with determination. Rating: 17.5+/20 Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Apr 2021)
Château Quintus
Domaines Clarence Dillon (Haut Brion) bought, in 2011, what used to be Château Tertre Daugay, a Grand cru Classé Saint Emilion. The name was chosen following the Roman tradition of calling the fifth child Quintus. The property was originally about 16 hectares of vines on a promontory on the south-west corner of the Saint Emilion plateau, with vines on the limestone of the plateau itself and sloping down on all sides on clay over the limestone base, looking over the Dordogne valley.
In 2013, the Dillon family acquired Château L'Arrosée which they include in the production of Chateau Quintus. This has expanded the property to 28 hectares of vines on a gently sloping plateau 68 meters above sea level in the south west of Saint Emilion. Soil type varies from limestone in the north of the property, to clay and gravel in the south. Merlot represents 66% of the vines planted; Cabernet Franc (26%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (8%) make up the rest.
There are two wines, Château Quintus and its second wine 'Le Dragon de Quintus'.
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.