2017 CLOS DU MARQUIS Saint Julien, Lea & Sandeman

CLOS DU MARQUIS

2020 Saint Julien

Grapes Merlot, Cab Franc, Cab Sauv
Colour Red
Origin France, Bordeaux
Sub-district Haut Médoc
Village Saint Julien
ABV 13%

Perfumed with currant, crushed stone, and minerals. Graphite, too. Medium-bodied, very fine and racy. Lead pencil. Very integrated. Needs time to open and show its true self. Sweet tobacco at the end. 61% cabernet sauvignon, 6% cabernet franc and 33% merlot. Better after 2028. Rating: 95 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (May 2023)


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The 2020 Clos du Marquis is a rich, explosive wine. Super-ripe dark cherry, red plum, dark spice and pomegranate give the 2020 its effusive, open-knit personality. There's terrific energy and tons of class here. The purity of the fruit is very fine, yet the tannins are a bit imposing at this stage. Give this a few years to come together. Drinking range: 2025 - 2035 Rating: 93 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2023)

The 2020 Clos du Marquis, matured in 40% new oak, has something almost genteel on the nose, very harmonious, almost "laid back" as lilting blackberry, cigar humidor, loamy aromas unfurl in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with a pleasant salinity on the entry, moderate depth, well balanced with black pepper and sage towards the structured finish. There is a sense of confidence about this Clos du Marquis that should see it age well over 20 to 25 years. Excellent. Drinking range: 2027 - 2050 Rating: 92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 2023)

Clos du Marquis is surrounded by ‘3 Léovilles and a Pichon’ and so this is undoubtedly classy real estate. In 2020, this wine has recorded its highest ever IPT and while this ‘tannin index’ is not in any way a quality guide it certainly explains the depth of fruit and apparent power on display here. Exotic, lusty, roguish and rather wild, while this wine lacks the refinement of both the Las Cases itself and Le Petit Lion, it presents to us a member of this eminent family with a naughty glint in its eye and a more extrovert demeanour. This irreverence is balanced with neat freshness on the finish and so if you are interested in tasting a touch of flamboyance in 2020, the Marquis will be sure to entertain you Rating: 17.5+ Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Jun 2021)

Château Léoville Las Cases

St Julien Deuxième cru 1855 One of the leading "super-seconds" - a second growth chateau who's wines rival, in terms of quality and often price, the fabled First Growths of the Haut-Médoc. Before the Revolution, the Leoville estate was one of the largest and grandest in the region. At the time, it was in the aristrocratic ownership of the family of the Marquis de Las-Cases-Beauvoir. Unsurprisingly, the Marquis had to flee. To avoid Leoville being seized, the family decided to sell up but the complicated ownership of the estate, which was split between siblings, prevented the sale of Leoville as a whole and, in the end, only a small portion was sold off, to Hugh Barton, and this became Château Leoville Barton. The remainder of the estate came back to the Marquis' family when his son, Pierre-Jean, inherited most of Leoville, the only exception being a small portion inherited by his sister Jeanne. Jeanne's daughter married Baron Jean-Marie de Poyferré and, in 1840, this portion of the estate sheered off to become Château Leoville Poyferré. To stop further divisions among inheriting children, a holding company was founded to own Château Las Cases. Théophile Skawinski, who managed the estate, bought some shares which later passed to his son-in-law André Delon. The Delon family continued to buy share as they became available until, eventually, they became the owners of Château Leoville Las Cases. The bulk of Las Cases's vineyards - the Grand Clos - sit at the very northern end of St Julien, facing Château Latour across the Ruisseau de Juillac. The vines are planted to 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. The hand-picked grapes are fermented in an unusual array of wooden, stainless-steel and cement tanks. Wines spend 20 months in oak, with the proportion of new wood for the grand vin varying from 50% to 100% depending on the vintage. Château Leoville Las Cases have one of the most highly regarded "second wines" in Bordeaux - Clos du Marquis. The first vintage was in 1902, long predating most of its competitors. Its status as a true "second wine" is sometimes disputed, as there is a distinct Clos du Marquis vineyard, a little way to the west of the Grand Clos, although the cuvée does include some declassifications from the grand vin and fruit of younger vines. Its status as a "second wine" also belies the quality which exceeds many of the region's "first" wines.

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