2022 Reserve du Chateau, Chateau Meaume Reserve, Bordeaux Superieur 12x75cl
"Polished, savoury, black cherry and currant with earthy nuances on the nose; on the palate, super-juicy, fresh and savoury, bright cherry and dark fruit that is gently grippy, clean, and finishing incredibly long. " (Mr.Wheeler tasting note)
£84 / Case£7 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Beaumont, Haut-Medoc 12x75cl
"Typically pretty, perfumed and floral on the nose, followed on the palate by a lovely medium weight, juicy fruit at the core, excellent level of refreshing acidity with a firm yet gentle tannis structure. A firm favourite and Star Buy among both our clients and our Staff, and the 2022 delivers once again" Mr Wheeler tasting note. Drink 2027 - 2037
£120 / Case£10 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Chantalouette, Pomerol 12x75cl
"Seductive on the nose, floral and perfumed. Gently cushioning tannins give the frame and structure, both chewy and quite stern in terms of minerality, they set the tone for the wine with liquorice,... wet stone, slate and graphite elements all the way through with a chalky velvety texture on the tongue. Feels quite serious but polished, fruit is clean and pure and this feels like it will be easy to enjoy when ready. Retains coolness and freshness, acidity a touch on the low side in relation to the richness and intensity of the fruit and tannins, this is a big broad wine but lots to enjoy." 93 pts., Georgina Hindle, decanter.com
£200 / Case£16.67 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Domaine de Chevalier Cru Classe, Pessac-Leognan 6x75cl
"The 2022 Domaine de Chevalier was picked from 5-30 September and represents the 40th vintage under the irrepressible Olivier Bernard, who celebrates with a one-off label. It soars from the glass... with take-no-prisoner aromatics: perfumed mineral-rich red berry fruit, incense and black truffle. Pessac-like earthiness with an opposing airiness defines many a great wine from this estate. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy tannins. Slightly powdery in texture and saline in the mouth, this gets the saliva flowing. However, the arching structure on the finish suggests it will require considerable bottle age. Cellar this for a couple of decades, and you'll be repaid handsomely. 14% alcohol." 95-97 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com
£340 / Case£56.67 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Figeac Premier Grand Cru Classe B, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 3x75cl
“The 2022 Figeac was picked between 1-26 September with the pH of 3.7 and 14% alcohol. This wine combines both Left Bank and Right Bank traits due to its blend (as usual), but this year leans more... to the Right Bank despite a slightly lower contribution of Cabernet Sauvignon. It is very well defined, fresh and shows lively black fruit, incense and nuanced Chinese tea aromas. The palate is beautifully balanced with a lightly spiced entry, fine depth and with plenty of concentration counterbalanced by finesse toward the graphite-infused finish. Its saline aftertaste beckons you back for another sip. An appropriate way to start your tenure as a Grand Cru Classé "A".” 97-99 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com
£759 / Case£253 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Alter Ego de Palmer Margaux 6x75cl
"Dense fruits, violet reflections, with a hit of iris, peony and roses. This is a serious wine, with intense phenolics and full extraction that just walks the line, edges of ripe cassis, fig, saffran... spice, cocoa bean, grilled campfire notes, dark bitter chocolate and fennel. High drama, maintains estate signature, keeping its own imprint and personality. Harvest September 7 right through to October 5. Blend done by December, yield 23hl/h. 3.73ph. Thomas Duroux director." 92 points, jane Anson, www.janeanson.com
£402 / Case£67 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Beaumont, Haut-Medoc 6x75cl
"Typically pretty, perfumed and floral on the nose, followed on the palate by a lovely medium weight, juicy fruit at the core, excellent level of refreshing acidity with a firm yet gentle tannis structure. A firm favourite and Star Buy among both our clients and our Staff, and the 2022 delivers once again" Mr Wheeler tasting note. Drink 2027 - 2037
£60 / Case£10 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Haut-Brion Premier Cru Classe, Pessac-Leognan 6x75cl
"The 2022 Haut-Brion, matured in 70% new oak, represents the 99th vintage under three generations of the Delmas family (see my recently published book for a remarkable photo of the first). It has... slightly darker fruit than the La Mission at the moment. Incense and potpourri infuse the black plum and bilberry. There's a touch of brine in the background. It manifests more and more complexity as it opens in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied and is blessed with unerring symmetry. It has a bewitching granular texture, complex and more focused than recent vintages, and comes across as almost pixelated on the finish. Quintessential Haut-Brion. Magnificent, but not necessarily the best wine that Delmas oversaw in this vintage."
96-98 Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2023
£3,090 / Case£515 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Calon Segur 3eme Cru Classe, Saint-Estephe 6x75cl
"The 2022 Calon-Ségur was cropped at 26hL/ha compared to 36hL/ha last year. Matured for 20 months in new oak, it has a well-defined bouquet with blackberry, raspberry, cedar and subtle tobacco... scents. The 2022 is tight at first but opens with aeration (winemaker Vincent Millet remarked how the wine was much more expressive the week I tasted it in mid-April compared to the previous week). The palate is classically styled with impressive mid-palate depth. With strict tannins and multi-layered graphite-infused black fruit, this is reminiscent of some postwar Calon-Ségur's I have tasted. I wonder if slightly less vin de presse would have been better? Uncompromising, perhaps that might be its virtue, but it means that patience will be required."
94/96 Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2023
£610 / Case£101.67 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Pichon Baron 2eme Cru Classe, Pauillac 6x75cl
“The 2022 Pichon Baron was picked 8 September to 3 October and matured in 70% new oak. It has wonderful precision on the nose, with intense blackberry and bilberry fruit, crushed stone and... graphite. The oak is seamlessly integrated. The palate is tensile right from the start. Taut and linear, fresh, quite saline with a nuanced touch of black pepper toward the finish. Real pedigree and sophistication here, this is a magnificent Pichon-Baron that achieves a new level of precision thanks to the more piecemeal Sauternes-inspired harvest in tandem with their new winery.” 96-98 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com
£810 / Case£135 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Giscours 3eme Cru Classe, Margaux 6x75cl
“The 2022 Giscours was picked between 1 and 29 September, one of the earliest ever, with no SO2 added until blending and using bio-protection (yeasts) to protect the must. It has a delightful and... sensual bouquet with lifted, violet and peony-scented blueberry and black cherry fruit. This is very well-defined and perhaps the purest I have encountered from barrel. The palate is medium-bodied with a disarming silky texture, harmonious and focused. It's mineral-driven with a poised and pixelated finish. Certainly, this represents one of the best wines from this Margaux estate in recent years, echoing their golden period of the 60s and early 70s. Tasted twice with consistent notes. ” Drink 2030-2070. 95-97 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com (May2023)
£300 / Case£50 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Troplong Mondot Premier Grand Cru Classe B, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 6x75cl
“The 2022 Troplong-Mondot was picked from 29 August when it was 31° Celsius, which according to estate director Aymeric de Gironde, felt cool compared to the rest of summer. The alcohol is 14.9%... with the pH of 3.48. It sees no SO2 until it is transferred into barrel. The nose is very attractive and certainly very expressive of its limestone terroir: blackberry, briary, crushed iris petal and light marine scents. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy black fruit, quite chalky in texture, that acidic spine governing its overall mouthfeel. Sapid on the finish, this Troplong Mondot builds in the mouth and coats it on the finish. De Gironde and I discussed my previous scores. I always said that he would get better and better during his tenure and this is clearly the case in 2022, the best Troplong Mondot...so far.” Drink 2032-2068
96-98 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com (April 2023)
£612 / Case£102 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 La Dame de Montrose, Saint-Estephe 6x75cl
A second wine that would embarrass numerous classified growths, the 2022 La Dame de Montrose unfurls in the glass with aromas of blackberries, violets, rose petals, charcoal and loamy soil, followed... by a medium to full-bodied, layered and fleshy palate of striking concentration, energy and dimension. Seamless and complete, it's a blend of 71% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.
92-94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, April 2023
£189 / Case£31.50 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Mauvesin Barton, Moulis en Medoc 12x75cl
“The 2022 Mauvesin-Barton is a joy to taste today. Plump, juicy and forward, the 2022 is marvellously seductive right out of the gate. Expressive floral and spice notes lend complexity to the sweet red cherry/plum fruit. Soft, caressing contours add a gorgeous sense of immediacy.”
90-92 points., Antonio Galloni, vinous.com
£150 / Case£12.50 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Cantemerle 5eme Cru Classe, Haut-Medoc 6x75cl
"The finest wine this estate has produced in some time is the 2022 Cantemerle, a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc that bursts from the glass with... aromas of sweet blackberries, violets, rose petals and spices. Medium to full-bodied, ample and fleshy, with an enveloping core of sweet, perfumed fruit framed by supple tannin, it concludes with a long, mouthwatering finish. The pH is a very healthy 3.6 this year, and yields were low at 29 hectoliters per hectare."
92-94 pts, William Kelley, www.robertparker.com
£133 / Case£22.17 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Leoville Las Cases 2eme Cru Classe, Saint-Julien 6x75cl
"The 2022 Léoville Las-Cases was picked 8-30 September with more infusion than extraction, matured in 84% new oak. Precocious, almost decadent blackberry and blueberry fruit on the nose, there is... something lavish and audacious about this Saint-Julien. There is an underlying estuarine element, a whiff off the banks of the Gironde. The palate is medium-bodied with polished tannins, very detailed, extremely pure, what you might call a "vertical" Las-Cases with fabulous precision on the finish. This surpasses the 2018-2020 trio and to use that clichéd expression, is a "tour de force". "
98/100 Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2023
£1,550 / Case£258.33 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Vieux Chateau Certan, Pomerol 6x75cl
"The 2022 Vieux Château Certan was picked between 6 and 21 September at 35hL/ha and matured in two-thirds new oak. Alexandre Thienpont thinks it is a combination of the 2019 and 2020 and said that... the Cabernet Sauvignon, from younger vines, lowered the alcohol (14.4%) and lent perfume. The aromatics are spellbinding with brilliant delineation and a surfeit of freshness. Blackberry, briary, crushed stone and light iris flower scents, vivacious and so energetic. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, very supple tannins, and lashings of cracked black pepper, pencil box and tobacco infusing the black fruit. As Thienpont said, persistent on the finish and gently lacquering the vines. The Cabernet is very expressive this year and so while it is a real Left Bank/Right Bank hybrid, it is, at the same time, quintessentially Pomerol."
97- 99 Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2023
£1,650 / Case£275 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Le Marquis de Calon Segur, Saint-Estephe 6x75cl
"One of several over-performing second wines in this vintage is the 2022 Le Marquis de Calon-Ségur, a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and seamless Saint-Estèphe redolent of minty berries, licorice and rose petals. Lively and penetrating, it punches above its weight."
91-93 Pts., William Kelley, www.robertparker.com
£144 / Case£24 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Le Petit Mouton de Mouton Rothschild, Pauillac 6x75cl
"The 2022 Le Petit Mouton has an intense bouquet with violet infused cassis and blackberry fruit, just a faint touch of Medjool dates in the background. It opens extremely confidently in the glass.... The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins. Structured, granular in texture and multi-layered, it's quite difficult to recognize this as a mere Deuxieme Vin. Long on the aftertaste, this is an outstanding Le Petit Mouton".
92-94 points, Neal Martin, vinous
£1,098 / Case£183 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte, Blanc, Pessac-Leognan 6x75cl
"The 2022 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is matured in 50% new oak for a planned 12 months, removed from barrel after 9 months with three months in vat after blending. It has a very perfumed nose with... yellow plums, jasmine, walnut and touches of fennel. The palate is medium-bodied with fine depth and acidity. Waxy in texture, with hazelnut and white pepper toward the saline, almost creamy finish."
94-96 Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2023
£720 / Case£120 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte Cru Classe, Pessac-Leognan 6x75cl
"The 2022 Smith Haut Lafitte was cropped at 29hL/ha between 5 and 30 September, undergoing half the extraction, aged in 60% new oak for a planned 18 months. It is fragrant and very pure on the nose:... beautiful blackberry, raspberry and liquorice. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, very elegant and focused, fine-boned with an exceptionally pure and caressing tobacco-tinged finish. This is going to grow to be a wonderful, delicious Smith Haut Lafitte. 14.5% alcohol."
95/97 Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2023
£684 / Case£114 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Gloria, Saint-Julien 6x75cl
“The 2022 Gloria was picked from 12-26 September and matured in 40% new oak, slightly less than the Saint-Pierre. It has a perfumed, floral nose with crushed violet infusing the black cherry and... blueberry fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with sumptuous tannins that belie the structure underneath. With pure fruit and well-judged acidity, this 2022 is sensual with a persistent and lightly spiced finish. Superb.” 94-96 pts., Neal Martin, vinous
£189 / Case£31.50 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Lynch Bages 5eme Cru Classe, Pauillac 6x75cl
“The 2022 Lynch-Bages was picked 12 September, around 15 days earlier than usual until 24 September at around 35hL/ha. Aged for 18 months in 75% new oak, it has a backward nose that demands a lot... of encouragement. This is not as immediate as the 2016 or 2019 at the same stage. Powerful blackberry and boysenberry fruit, cedar and light tobacco notes, this feels like an edifice of aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy tannins, beautifully balanced, very harmonious yet there is an enormous backbone here that (again) is reminiscent of Mouton. Extremely long on the finish, this will need its barrel maturation to fully knit together and it is going to be a Pauillac for the long haul.” 97 pts., Georgina Hindle, decanter.com
£636 / Case£106 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Echo de Lynch Bages, Pauillac 6x75cl
"Blue fruits, subtle perfume, a juicy blackcurrant and stony minerality on the nose. Supple and juicy, a real sense of fun with detail to the fine tannins. Well balanced, gorgeous texture, depth and... characterful. A great second wine still with terroir markers, a salty finish, chalky texture and grippy tannins. Still concentrated and serious, there’s an intensity to the fruit but really well delivered. Will be a beauty.“ 93 pts., Georgina Hindle, decanter.com
£195 / Case£32.50 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur