CLOS DE L'ORATOIRE
2024 Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion
80 M 20 CF13% Some hints of spice, flowers and sweet herbs wrapped around red fruit. Juicy fruit and very fresh acidity which is nevertheless balanced by bright fruitiness and some silky quality to the mid-weight tannins. This is a lovely success in the vintage and will be providing delicious drinking in the mid to long term, from around five years from now. Rating: 91 L&S (Apr 2025)
In Bond
75cl bottles (case of 6)
* 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.
80 Merlot, 20 Cabernet Franc: 25% new oak: 13% alc: 40 hl/ha: Harvested between 24 September and 8 October: Organic certified
The long-term decision to include more Cabernet Franc in this wine for added complexity on the nose and palate is paying off. The chassis here is much slimmer and more angular than I have seen before, and yet the result is a much longer and more crisply refreshing wine. The balance takes my mind back two or three decades to when wines were routinely long, raspy and in need of ageing. The main difference today is the brightness of the fruit and the clarity of the message. You will need to be patient, but this could turn out to be a blushingly beautiful, graceful wine in a decade. 17+/20 Rating: 17+ Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (May 2025)
A fresh and crunchy red with creamy tannins that are caressing and pretty. Medium-bodied, bright and lively. A blend of 80% merlot and 20% cabernet franc. Rating: 92-93 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2025)
The 2024 Clos de l'Oratoire is a very beautiful Saint-Émilion. Dark, layered and vibrant, Clos de l'Oratoire has a lot to offer. The 2024 is a bit more on the refined side, a reflection of both the vintage and a stylistic shift that has been in place for a number of years. Lavender, spice, licorice and espresso weave into a core of blue-toned fruit. Silky tannins wrap it all up in this stylish Saint-Émilion. Drinking range: 2032 - 2054 Rating: 91-94 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2025)
Black cherry puree on the opening, fresh pomegranate and orange peel, oyster shell salinity comes in pretty strongly halfway through. Great quality, with lift and falls on the right side of austere. Harvest 24 September to 8 October. 40 hl/ha. 25% new oak, 14ha of vines, limestone plateau plus clay limestone slopes. Drinking range: 2028 - 2036 Rating: 91 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (Apr 2025)
Clos de l'Oratoire
Located on Saint-Émilion's north-east slope, the Clos de l'Oratoire estate dates back to the mid-19th century to the Beylot family, Libourne based négociants. In the 1969 Saint-Émilion reclassification, Clos de l'Oratoire was ranked Grand Cru Classé. The 10.32 hectares of vines grow on clay-limestone and Fronsac molasse on the upper part of the slope, and clay-sand on the lower part of the slope, a terroir which is enitrely suited to the Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc grape blend. The average age of vines at Clos de l'Oratoire is 35 years, and grapes are all hand harvested into small crates to avoid bruising. Since 1991, the estate has been under the charge of Comte Stephan von Neipperg, who inherited part of the vineyard from his father Joseph-Hubert, Graf von Neipperg.
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. Many properties specify a standard case format, and may make additional charges for six-bottle cases, for example. We offer wood cases of six bottles as standard where these are available without extra charge, but we can source wines in any format that is offered by the Château. If you want six-bottle cases where a 12 bottle case is offered, please check for the extra case charge. 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
- +£9.50 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.