CHÂTEAU LÉOVILLE POYFERRÉ
2022 2ème Cru Classé Saint Julien
58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 4& Petit Verdot. 80% new oak. 14.4% alc. 3.87 pH. 93 IPT. 33.4 hl/ha. Harvest dates – 8 – 28 September I asked Sara Lecompte Cuvelier to remind me of the mottos she and her team used to describe the past few vintages. 2018 was ‘Disgrace to Grace’, 2019 was ‘Solaire & Estival’, 2020 was ‘A Promise Kept’, and 2021 was ‘Victorious Vintage’. This year, Sara’s one-word motto is ‘Inoui’, which I must admit I needed to look up on my phone! The literal translation is ‘unheard of’, and she elaborated, saying they have never seen a vintage like this before. Well, I have never tasted a wine like ’22 Poyferré before because this is an absolute gem of a wine. This astonishing wine is a pinpoint accurate combination of power, fruit integrity, carefully controlled concentration, vital freshness and an immensely long finish. This is already a legendary Poyferré, and it is only half-made. I expect the rest of its élévage to bring even more composure and distinction. This wine completely blows me away as every element I look for in a great wine is here, and the assembly is precision personified. Rating: 19.5+ Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.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.
This is an impressively sanguine and ample wine. It reveals intense aromas of red and black fruit that wrap the tongue. Warm and persistent, it finishes on fresh, minty flavours. Rating: 97-98 La Revue du Vin de France (May 2023)
Picking here started September 8th, and was all finished by the 28th. It is a blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. There is a beautiful perfume on the nose, with a dark and precisely defined fruit profile, black plum and scented cherry, with inky veins of cocoa bean, tobacco and soot. as well as perfumed notes of verbena, lavender and peach. The palate shows superb harmony, initially caressing the palate with glossy black and perfumed fruits, intertwined with the same floral notes seen on the nose, and it retains control of the palate through the middle, keeping the subframe of finely grained tannins hidden from view, even though you can sense them, draped with dark chocolate and smouldering tobacco, through the curtain of fruit. This is stunningly good, with dark, savoury, tobacco-infused fruits running through to the finish. An excellent result, with a long simmering grip of ripe tannins. Top. The alcohol is 14.4%. Tasted twice. Rating: 96-98 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (May 2023)
58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. Elegant and complex, fresh and alluring, the texture seductive and suave. Cassis and cedar notes with a hint of mint. Powerful but creamy tannins. Plenty of drive with length and grip on the finish. Clearly has potential. (JL) 14.4% Drinking range: 2032 - 2050 Rating: 17.5+ James Lawther MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (May 2023)
A very solid LP with black berry, blackcurrant, crushed stone and lavender character. Full and really well structured with a linear length to it. Focused and so polished. Thoughtful. 58% cabernet sauvignon, 34% merlot, 4% cabernet franc and 4% petit verdot. Rating: 96-97 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (May 2023)
The 2022 Léoville Poyferré has turned out very nicely, offering up aromas of crème de cassis, cherries, violets and creamy new oak, followed by a medium to full-bodied, rich and fleshy palate that's ripe but lively, with supple tannins and a long, vanillin-inflected finish. This year, the team began picking their Merlot comparatively early and didn't perform a saignée (tank bleed), given the natural concentration of the vintage, though it remains the most flamboyant and demonstrative of the three Léoville estates, seeing some 80% new oak with malolactic fermentation in barrique for the new barrels. It will be a blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot and the balance Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Rating: 94-96 William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (Apr 2023)
Dense and succulent fruit and tannins, beautifully powerful, with fresh acidities, beautifully spicy with notes of black cherries, fresh figs, eucalyptus, rosemary, rose petals and cassis. Muscular tannins shot through with salted caramel sweetness, lifted by saffran and slate. Accomplished, impressive. Harvest September 8 to 28. 80% new oak from 16 different coopers. Drinking range: 2030 - 2050 Rating: 96 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (Apr 2023)
The 2022 Léoville Poyferré was picked 8 to 28 September at 33.4hL/ha and matured in 80% new oak. It has a high IPT of 93 and 14.4% alcohol (half a degree less than the 2018). It is quintessentially LP on the nose, with those extravagant and sensual black and blueberry fruit, intermingling with crushed violet and iris. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, very harmonious and focused, perhaps more linear than expected with a velvety-smooth finish. This is a very classy, sophisticated Saint-Julien that may well rest at the top of my banded score once in bottle. Drinking range: 2030 - 2070 Rating: 95-97 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2023)
Château Léoville Poyferré
St Julien Deuxième cru 1855 When Baron Jean-Marie de Poyferré de Cères married the grand-daughter of the Marquis de Las-Cases-Beauvoir, he inherited a portion of the grand old Leoville estate. The Poyferré family owned the estate for long enough to see the granting of Second Growth status in common with the other Leovilles but, in time, oidium and financial difficulties led them to sell Leoville Poyferré. Eventually, it came in to the ownership of the Cuvelier family who own Poyferré to this day. For most of the 20th Century, compared to its namesake neighbours, Leoville Poyferré's fortunes waned as the quality of the wines fell back. Since 1980, however, considerable improvements have been made to the chais and the vineyards. The previously high proportion of Merlot has reduced, whilst the amount of Cabernet Sauvignon has risen to about 65% (Merlot is now a more Médoc-like 25%). Today, Leoville Poyferré can be seen on an equal footing with, at least, Leoville Barton. Grapes are fermented in stainless-steel, and then spend 18 to 20 months in oak (75% new). In the early years on the 20th Century, the cru bourgeois property of Château Moulin Riche was absorbed into Leoville Poyferré. The name was briefly resurrected as the name of Poyferré's second wine, although it is now produced as a wine in its own right from the vineyards of the old château. A second wine of both properties is Pavillon de Poyferré.
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 2026. 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 2026. 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.