2020 Château Pape Clément Blanc, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

2020 Château Pape Clément Blanc, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

Product: 20208011521
Prices start from £700.00 per case Buying options
2020 Château Pape Clément Blanc, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

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Available by the case In Bond. Pricing excludes duty and VAT, which must be paid separately before delivery. Storage charges apply.
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6 x 75cl bottle
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Description

Sauvignon Blanc 67%, Sémillon 30%, Sauvignon Gris 3%

Unusually for the appellation, there is a significant area of the vineyard with clay soil. This is good for the château’s Merlot, and also for their white grapes: the cooler soil helps to preserve freshness. The summer warmth has imbued this wine’s bouquet with exotic lychee and pineapple notes, but overall, the palate is assertive. There’s depth and rigour, and an appealing leafy minerality. As with the red, Jeanne Lacombe considers this one of their best offerings of the past 20 years.

Drink 2023-2035

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Critics reviews

Neal Martin, Vinous92-94/100
The 2020 Pape Clément Blanc is a clear step up from the Le Prélat and Clementin, delivering taut, mineral-rich citrus fruit aromas with vibrancy and tension. The palate is well balanced and seems less oaky than previous vintages when tasted from barrel. Ginger and lemongrass enliven the finish on this excellent Pape Clément Blanc.

Drink from 2022 to 2038

Neal Martin, Vinous (May 2021) Read more
Antonio Galloni, Vinous90-92/100
The 2020 Pape Clément Blanc is remarkably understated. Passion fruit, white flowers, lemon confit, ginger and white pepper are all very nicely lifted. In 2020, the Blanc is decidedly airy and less unctuous than it has been in the past. It will be interesting to see where things stand at the end of aging,

Drink from 2022 to 2032

Antonio Galloni, Vinous (June 2021) Read more
Jane Anson94/100
A delicious Pape Clément blanc, this has flesh, power, depth, character and a ton of juicy minerality with white pear, peach, and a slate-filled texture that adds grip and saline freshness. Well balanced and easy to recommend. Tasted three times.

Drink from 2022 to 2032

Jane Anson, Decanter (April 2021) Read more
Wine Advocate94-96/100
Pape Clement's 2020 Blanc leaps from the glass with gregarious notions of fresh pink grapefruit, Bosc pears and lime blossoms with hints of coriander seed, yuzu zest and white pepper. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers fantastically intense citrus and pear flavors with a racy backbone and silky texture, finishing long and fragrant. The blend this year is 67% Sauvignon Blanc, 30% Sémillon and 3% Sauvignon Gris, with anticipated bottling projected to be taking place on December 14 and 15, 2021. The alcohol is 13.5%.

Drink 2024 - 2037

Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (May 2021) Read more
Jancis Robinson MW17/20
Good lemon lift on the nose here. Really lively with some spritz and a kiss of oak rather than being dominated by it. This is clever winemaking with a mineral element. Really lively. I may be tasting this four days too late but it's still awfully impressive! Just the right balance of ripe fruit and fresh acidity. Sprightly even. Tension and a floral element. Great stuff! 

Drink 2023 - 2029

Jancis Robinson MW, jancisrobinson.com (April 2021) Read more
James Suckling97-98/100
Lots of white peach and red apple with crushed-stone and pine-needle undertones. Full-bodied, yet compact and linear with beautiful toffee, light caramel, praline and nougat character to the fruit. Hints of wood. It shows phenolic tension and form, yet remains agile and energetic. Impressive for the vintage.

James Suckling, jamessuckling.com (April 2021) Read more
Michael Schuster90-91/100
Pale gold; rich, supple wine, moderate in acidity; dry, broad, quite mouthfilling, but lacking real vitality; plenty of matter, moderate length across the palate, and modest in scope and definition for its status. Good light length to finish. Good wine, of course, but not a top PC Blanc.

Drink 2024 - 2030

Michael Schuster, The World of Fine Wine (May 2021) Read more

About this WINE

Chateau Pape Clement

Chateau Pape Clement

Château Pape Clément is a Cru Classé Graves property that has one of the oldest documented histories of any Bordeaux vineyard, having been planted in 1300 by Bernard de Groth, the future Pope Clément V. In 1939 the estate was bought by the Montagne family and is now owned and run by Léo Montagne.

Pape Clément is located in the Bordeaux suburb of Pessac and consists of a chai and 32 hectares of vineyards, planted with Cabernet Sauvignon (60%), Merlot (40%) and small amounts of Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Muscadelle.

The quality of the wines at Pape Clément slipped in the 1960s and 70s, largely because of under-investment. Bernard Magrez was appointed as general manager in 1985 and he turned Pape Clément's fortunes around. He introduced more rigorous selection in the vineyards, as well as installing stainless steel vats and raising the percentage of new oak casks used in the maturation process.

Pape Clément now produces one of the finest clarets in Pessac-Léognan.

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Pessac-Leognan

Pessac-Leognan

In 1986 a new communal district was created within Graves, in Bordeaux,  based on the districts of Pessac and Léognan, the first of which lies within the suburbs of the city. Essentially this came about through pressure from Pessac-Léognan vignerons, who wished to disassociate themselves from growers with predominately sandy soils further south in Graves.

Pessac-Léognan has the best soils of the region, very similar to those of the Médoc, although the depth of gravel is more variable, and contains all the classed growths of the region. Some of its great names, including Ch. Haut-Brion, even sit serenely and resolutely in Bordeaux's southern urban sprawl.

The climate is milder than to the north of the city and the harvest can occur up to two weeks earlier. This gives the best wines a heady, rich and almost savoury character, laced with notes of tobacco, spice and leather. Further south, the soil is sandier with more clay, and the wines are lighter, fruity and suitable for earlier drinking.

Recommended Châteaux: Ch. Haut-Brion, Ch. la Mission Haut-Brion, Ch. Pape Clément, Ch Haut-Bailly, Domaine de Chevalier, Ch. Larrivet-Haut-Brion, Ch. Carmes Haut-Brion, Ch. La Garde, Villa Bel-Air.

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Sauvignon Blanc & Sémillon

Sauvignon Blanc & Sémillon

The blend used for White Graves and Sauternes and rarely encountered outside France. In the great dry whites of Graves, Sauvignon Blanc tends to predominate in the blend, although properties such as Smith Haut Lafite use 100% Sauvignon Blanc while others such as Laville Haut Brion have as much as 60% Sémillon in their final blends. Sauvignon Blanc wines can lose their freshness and fruit after a couple of years in bottle - if blended with Sémillon, then the latter bolsters the wine when the initial fruit from the Sauvignon fades. Ultimately Sauvignon Blanc gives the wine its aroma and raciness while Sémillon gives it backbone and longevity.

In Sauternes, Sémillon is dominant, with Sauvignon Blanc playing a supporting role - it is generally harvested about 10 days before Sémillon and the botrytis concentrates its sweetness and dampens Sauvignon Blanc`s naturally pungent aroma. It contributes acidity, zip and freshness to Sauternes and is an important component of the blend.

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