Clos du Marquis 2020

Wine Spectator: 93
This is pure St.-Julien through and through, with a core of cassis and plum fruit laced with a cool cast iron note, while cedar, anise and savory nuances chime in the background. An understated style. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc.

Wine Advocate: 93
The 2020 Clos du Marquis wafts from the glass with aromas of rich berries, cherries, orange zest, pencil shavings and crushed mint. Medium to full-bodied, rich and velvety, with a sweet core of fruit, lively acids and powdery tannins that assert themselves on the youthfully firm finish, it's a serious wine that will require and reward patience. Best After 2027.

Decanter: 92
This has the most gorgeous savoury fruit edge, a brilliant Marquis with a sappy chalky quality, concentrated and intense but still keeps the St-Julien balance. 40% new oak.

Wine Enthusiast: 95
Fragrant black currants give a classic wine that shines with the Cabernet Sauvignon. Its density comes from concentration, offering the potential of density without weight. The wine will age well.

James Suckling: 95
A tighter, more linear red with blackcurrant, olive and floral character. It’s medium-to full-bodied with a firm, racy finish. Tight. Sweet tobacco. 61% cabernet sauvignon, 6% cabernet franc and 33% merlot.

Jeb Dunnuck: 96
Pure crème de cassis, tobacco, black cherries, lead pencil, and a wonderful sense of minerality emerge from the 2020 Clos Du Marquis, and it's medium to full-bodied, with a pure, elegant texture, plenty of ripe tannins, and the vibrant, focused, lengthy style of the vintage front and center. It's going to need 4-6 years of bottle age, possibly more, but the balance, purity, and precision are all brilliant. The blend is 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc, raised in 40% new French oak. The technical information checks in with the alcohol at 13.57%, pH of 3.76, and an IPT of 84. This will be a long-lived Saint-Julien!

Jeb Dunnuck: 96

Pure crème de cassis, tobacco, black cherries, lead pencil, and a wonderful sense of minerality emerge from the 2020 Clos Du Marquis, and it's medium to full-bodied, with a pure, elegant texture, plenty of ripe tannins, and the vibrant, focused, lengthy style of the vintage front and center. It's going to need 4-6 years of bottle age, possibly more, but the balance, purity, and precision are all brilliant. The blend is 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc, raised in 40% new French oak. The technical information checks in with the alcohol at 13.57%, pH of 3.76, and an IPT of 84. This will be a long-lived Saint-Julien!