2020 Château Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse, St Emilion, Bordeaux
Critics reviews
It takes time to show itself fully - perhaps more than ever this year, as there is so much noise surrounding an estate that was overseen during the growing season and vinification by the team under Nicolas Thienpont, but given its final blend by new owner Josephine Duffau-Lagarosse, who will also take care of ageing from this point. Things kick off with a raspberry and damson softness that is quickly overtaken by iris, peony, and white rose aromatics, giving a push-and-pull between flowers and fruit on the attack. Blueberry and raspberry fruits dominate as the palate opens out, as do fennel and almond notes, giving a spicy kick before a saline-drenched mouthwatering finish.
As ever with Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse, the wine combines delicacy with laser-like focus and a build-up of tannins you barely notice until they kick back against the fruit. It takes a good few minutes before the softness that I found on the opening returns as the mid-palate widens out, and the richly textured Merlot becomes dominant after a clear Cabernet Franc hit on the attack. It will be fascinating to see what happens at this estate over the next decade, but the quality and potential of this terroir are unmistakable.
Drink 2029 - 2045
Jane Anson, Decanter.com (May 2021)
The 2020 Beauséjour Héritiers Duffau-Lagarrosse is racy, sophisticated and wonderfully polished. Crushed red berry fruit, lavender, rose petal, cinnamon and blood orange all race through the 2020. This is the first vintage overseen by consulting winemaker Julien Viaud, who seems to be going for a less extracted style than that favoured by Nicolas Thienpont. There is plenty of size and vertical explosive energy, but the 2020 is also wonderfully finessed, especially in its tannins. It's a striking wine by any measure.
Drink 2026 - 2050
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (February 2023)
Deep garnet-purple in colour, the 2020 Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse) wafts out of the glass with a glamorous perfume of red roses, kirsch, garrigue and black raspberries, giving way to a core of ripe blackberries and juicy black plums, plus earthy hints of truffles and tar. The medium to full-bodied palate is densely laden with loads of very finely packed and fragrant red and black fruit layers, framed by multilayered grainy and satiny tannin textures and amazing freshness, finishing fantastically long and mineral-laced.
Drink 2027 - 2047
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (June 2021)
The 2020 Beauséjour (Duffau Lagarrosse) is showing well in bottle, offering up aromas of dark berries, plums, liquorice, rose petals and spices framed by creamy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, layered and fleshy, with a rich core of fruit, lively acids and chalky structure, it was vinified by Nicolas Thienpont and his team, but Joséphine Duffau modified the final blend, which includes 19% Cabernet Franc and the balance Merlot. Tasted next to the 2018 and 2019, the 2020 is somewhat more restrained, but it is the end of a stylistic chapter rather than the beginning of a new one.
Drink 2028 - 2055
William Kelley, Wine Advocate (April 2023)
Subtle, discreet aroma of dark and red fruit. Fresh and well-balanced on the palate with compact fruit and an impressive tannic frame. Tannins are firmly present with a grainy edge but long and refreshing. It is clearly built for the long haul.
Drink 2028 - 2045
James Lawther MW, JancisRobinson.com (December 2022)
Blackberries, lavender, cedar, sandalwood, and flowers—very subtle aromas. It’s medium—to full-bodied with a very tight palate of fine, structured tannins that run the length of the wine. Closed at the end, it shows excellent precision and ageing potential.
Try after 2028
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (November 2023)
Dark and sultry, this is heady with ripe, perfumed fruits that dominate the palate, giving vertical layers of freshness, acidity and fruit concentration. It has style to it, a sleekness to the texture, and classy with a lovely core of juiciness. It's still a little constricted, with lots of liquorice and graphite on show and a touch of saltiness towards the finish.
Really well worked, mouthfilling, weighty, intense, forward and energetic. It's bigger and broader in terms of frame and flavour than the 2019 – with floral, blood orange, blueberry and bramble fruit nuances, but carries the weight well, remaining focused. I love the expression; it's dark, cool, sleek and textured. Just a gorgeous, delicious wine!
Drink 2027 - 2056
Georgina Hindle, Decanter.com (January 2023)
The 2020 Château Beauséjour (Duffau-Lagarrosse), made mostly by the team of Nicolas Thienpont (Joséphine Duffau-Lagarrosse put together the final blend), is another tour de force from this incredible terroir, and undeniably one of the wines of the vintage. Based on 81% Merlot and 19% Cabernet Franc brought up in 70% new French oak, it offers a sensationally pure bouquet of black raspberries, blueberries, scorched earth, graphite, and a dense, smoky, floral character that emerges with time in the glass.
With a voluptuous, layered mouthfeel, gorgeous mid-palate depth, building tannins, and a liqueur of mineral-like character on the finish, it shows the density, purity, precision, and vibrancy of this vintage perfectly and displays that rare mix of richness, intensity, elegance, and length that are the hallmarks of a truly great wine. This is unquestionably in the ranks of the 2009, 2010, and 2016 and will evolve for 40 years or more.
Drink 2028 - 2063
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com (March 2023)
About this WINE
Château Beauséjour
Château Beauséjour is a 6.8-hectare jewel long recognised for the quality of its terroir; it has been a Premier Grand Cru Classé B since the first St Émilion classification. Almost half the vineyard sits atop the appellation’s limestone plateau, another half extends down onto the côtes. This was once part of a larger estate along with what is now Château Beau-Séjour Bécot.
In 2020, the estate was put up for sale. There were many bidders; the French authorities were called upon to oversee the final decision. Ultimately, members of the Duffau-Lagarrosse family bid successfully, in tandem with the owners of the Clarins beauty group.
The estate is today led by Joséphine Duffau-Lagarrosse and Prisca Courtin-Clarins, both of whom are in their early 30s. They took the reins with the 2021 vintage, following the acclaimed stewardship of Nicolas Thienpont and his team.
St Émilion
St Émilion is one of Bordeaux's largest producing appellations, producing more wine than Listrac, Moulis, St Estèphe, Pauillac, St Julien and Margaux put together. St Emilion has been producing wine for longer than the Médoc but its lack of accessibility to Bordeaux's port and market-restricted exports to mainland Europe meant the region initially did not enjoy the commercial success that funded the great châteaux of the Left Bank.
St Émilion itself is the prettiest of Bordeaux's wine towns, perched on top of the steep limestone slopes upon which many of the region's finest vineyards are situated. However, more than half of the appellation's vineyards lie on the plain between the town and the Dordogne River on sandy, alluvial soils with a sprinkling of gravel.
Further diversity is added by a small, complex gravel bed to the north-east of the region on the border with Pomerol. Atypically for St Émilion, this allows Cabernet Franc and, to a lesser extent, Cabernet Sauvignon to prosper and defines the personality of the great wines such as Ch. Cheval Blanc.
In the early 1990s there was an explosion of experimentation and evolution, leading to the rise of the garagistes, producers of deeply-concentrated wines made in very small quantities and offered at high prices. The appellation is also surrounded by four satellite appellations, Montagne, Lussac, Puisseguin and St. Georges, which enjoy a family similarity but not the complexity of the best wines.
St Émilion was first officially classified in 1954, and is the most meritocratic classification system in Bordeaux, as it is regularly amended. The most recent revision of the classification was in 2012
Merlot
The most widely planted grape in Bordeaux and a grape that has been on a relentless expansion drive throughout the world in the last decade. Merlot is adaptable to most soils and is relatively simple to cultivate. It is a vigorous naturally high yielding grape that requires savage pruning - over-cropped Merlot-based wines are dilute and bland. It is also vital to pick at optimum ripeness as Merlot can quickly lose its varietal characteristics if harvested overripe.
In St.Emilion and Pomerol it withstands the moist clay rich soils far better than Cabernet grapes, and at it best produces opulently rich, plummy clarets with succulent fruitcake-like nuances. Le Pin, Pétrus and Clinet are examples of hedonistically rich Merlot wines at their very best. It also plays a key supporting role in filling out the middle palate of the Cabernet-dominated wines of the Médoc and Graves.
Merlot is now grown in virtually all wine growing countries and is particularly successful in California, Chile and Northern Italy.
When is a wine ready to drink?
We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.
Not ready
These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.
Ready - youthful
These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.
Ready - at best
These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.
Ready - mature
These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.
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Description
The 2020 Château Beauséjour (Duffau-Lagarrosse), made mostly by the team of Nicolas Thienpont (Joséphine Duffau-Lagarrosse put together the final blend), is another tour de force from this incredible terroir, and undeniably one of the wines of the vintage. Based on 81% Merlot and 19% Cabernet Franc brought up in 70% new French oak, it offers a sensationally pure bouquet of black raspberries, blueberries, scorched earth, graphite, and a dense, smoky, floral character that emerges with time in the glass.
With a voluptuous, layered mouthfeel, gorgeous mid-palate depth, building tannins, and a liqueur of mineral-like character on the finish, it shows the density, purity, precision, and vibrancy of this vintage perfectly and displays that rare mix of richness, intensity, elegance, and length that are the hallmarks of a truly great wine. This is unquestionably in the ranks of the 2009, 2010, and 2016 and will evolve for 40 years or more.
Drink 2028 - 2063
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com (March 2023)
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