DE-97
2022 Chateau Batailley 5eme Cru Classe, Pauillac 12x375cl
“Vibrant and intense colour in the glass, richly scented, floral and perfumed, open and inviting. Intense and concentrated, the fruit is dark and ripe but there’s no hint of over ripeness here... and instead you get cool blue fruits, chalky tannins and minty freshness with accents of liquorice, coffee, tobacco, cedar spice and clove. Tannins are clearly at the fore, giving the structure and the frame while the juicy acidity gives the energy and life. Still on the serious side, not tense so much as there’s good persistence, it’s lean and streamlined, but refined in a spiced and mineral way. Gorgeous terroir markers, lovely detail and precision, you can feel they haven't worked too much or tried too hard. It carries the signature of the estate in the serious structure, it’s a big wine, there’s such power here but so well controlled and delivered. Razor sharp, focussed and persistent. A gorgeous 2022, well executed and will be a clear success.”
97 pts., Georgina Hindle, www.decanter.com
£200 / Case£16.67 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2022 Chateau Batailley 5eme Cru Classe, Pauillac 6x75cl
“Vibrant and intense colour in the glass, richly scented, floral and perfumed, open and inviting. Intense and concentrated, the fruit is dark and ripe but there’s no hint of over ripeness here... and instead you get cool blue fruits, chalky tannins and minty freshness with accents of liquorice, coffee, tobacco, cedar spice and clove. Tannins are clearly at the fore, giving the structure and the frame while the juicy acidity gives the energy and life. Still on the serious side, not tense so much as there’s good persistence, it’s lean and streamlined, but refined in a spiced and mineral way. Gorgeous terroir markers, lovely detail and precision, you can feel they haven't worked too much or tried too hard. It carries the signature of the estate in the serious structure, it’s a big wine, there’s such power here but so well controlled and delivered. Razor sharp, focussed and persistent. A gorgeous 2022, well executed and will be a clear success.”
97 pts., Georgina Hindle, www.decanter.com
£186 / Case£31 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2019 Chateau d’Yquem Premier Cru Superieur, Sauternes 3x75cl
"For certain, it has a highly-aromatic bouquet that is beguiling in purity, enticing aromas of honeysuckle and saffron, soon joined by camomile, white flowers and orange blossom. It has wonderful... delineation and gains intensity with aeration. The palate is supremely well-balanced with fine bead of acidity. Very harmonious and armed with just the right amount of viscosity, this Yquem is surprisingly understated at first but gains presence, offering irresistible flavours of layers of honey, lemongrass, lemon thyme and orange pith. Yquem is so tempting in its youth, but I feel that this vintage will repay those with the nous to cellar for at least a decade." 98 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com
£750 / Case£250 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: Immediate
2019 Chateau d’Yquem Premier Cru Superieur, Sauternes 6×37.5cl
"For certain, it has a highly-aromatic bouquet that is beguiling in purity, enticing aromas of honeysuckle and saffron, soon joined by camomile, white flowers and orange blossom. It has wonderful... delineation and gains intensity with aeration. The palate is supremely well-balanced with fine bead of acidity. Very harmonious and armed with just the right amount of viscosity, this Yquem is surprisingly understated at first but gains presence, offering irresistible flavours of layers of honey, lemongrass, lemon thyme and orange pith. Yquem is so tempting in its youth, but I feel that this vintage will repay those with the nous to cellar for at least a decade." 98 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com
£780 / Case£130 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: Future Arrival
2019 Chateau d’Yquem Premier Cru Superieur, Sauternes 3x75cl
"For certain, it has a highly-aromatic bouquet that is beguiling in purity, enticing aromas of honeysuckle and saffron, soon joined by camomile, white flowers and orange blossom. It has wonderful... delineation and gains intensity with aeration. The palate is supremely well-balanced with fine bead of acidity. Very harmonious and armed with just the right amount of viscosity, this Yquem is surprisingly understated at first but gains presence, offering irresistible flavours of layers of honey, lemongrass, lemon thyme and orange pith. Yquem is so tempting in its youth, but I feel that this vintage will repay those with the nous to cellar for at least a decade." 98 pts., Neal Martin, vinous.com
£750 / Case£250 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: Future Arrival
2020 Kumeu River, Coddington Chardonnay, Kumeu 3x150cl
"Power and elegance, speaks of site. Fresh peach and quince with a nutty, salty, dairy fragrance adding breadth. Texture and mouthfeel, contrasting acid-line, peach and white stone soil complexity, long on the finish." 97 pts., Cameron Douglas MS, decanter.com
£165 / Case£55 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: Immediate
2020 Kumeu River, Coddington Chardonnay, Kumeu 6x75cl
"Power and elegance, speaks of site. Fresh peach and quince with a nutty, salty, dairy fragrance adding breadth. Texture and mouthfeel, contrasting acid-line, peach and white stone soil complexity, long on the finish." 97 pts., Cameron Douglas, MS, decanter.com
£150 / Case£25 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: Immediate
2021 Chateau Haut-Brion Premier Cru Classe, Pessac-Leognan 6x75cl
"The 2021 Haut-Brion has a more extravagant, charming bouquet compared directly with the La Mission at the moment, offering copious blackberry, black truffle, undergrowth and menthol scents. The... palate is very well balanced, harmonious and poised, with fine-grained tannins and an almost pixelated finish. This Haut-Brion seems to have reveled in the cooler growing season, and at 13.8% alcohol, there is almost a degree less than recent vintages. Jean-Philippe Delmas has fashioned a contender for wine of the vintage." 95-97, Neal Martin, www.vinous.com
£2,550 / Case£425 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2020 Chateau Pontet-Canet 5eme Cru Classe, Pauillac 6x75cl
The 2020 is yet another superb wine from an estate that has hardly put a foot wrong since the mid-1990s. A Château that delivers quality to equal and often surpass that of the super seconds, yet is... available at a much more palatable price tag.
60% cabernet, 32% merlot and 4% cab franc and petit verdot apiece, here is essential Pauillac: lifted, lilac-floral, chocolate and cherry nose; fresh, full-bodied cassis, plum and licorice palate, with layer upon layer of finely grained tannins with a terrific minerality and finish. It’s set for a glorious ageing.
£445 / Case£74.17 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur
2020 Yann Chave, Hermitage 6x75cl
Sheer Hermitage syrah elegance on full display: violet, black cherry, white pepper and liquorice nose; silky, juicy, sweet black/red cherry fruit, peppery, expansive and leading to ultra precision on a lingering finish. If you can resist the temptation of drinking this in 5 years, it will be extraordinary in 15.
£435 / Case£72.50 / BottleDuty Status: In BondAvailability: En Primeur