Collector Wines

wines

Rather tropical fruit aromas like pineapple and mangoes, as well as white peaches and lemons with hints of stones and minerals. It’s full-bodied with plenty of fruit, yet it’s fresh and steely. Lots of white peaches at the end. Hints of lees too, like bread dough. 80% sauvignon blanc and 20% semillon.James Suckling | 96 JSCola, liquorice and ripe blueberries on the nose - perfumed, heady and expressive. So delicious on the palate, smooth and driving with excellent energy - a youthful tension to the mid-palate. Sleek and stylish with a gorgeous texture, perfectly weighted to give a mouthfilling expression yet keeping a refined and focused delivery of black fruit, liquorice and floral flavours. Impressive and supremely pleasurable - this makes you want a glass immediately. Spicy, and perfumed because of the Cabernet Franc but all the better for it with 59% Cabernet Franc and 41% Merlot.Decanter | 95 DECThe 2020 Le Petit Cheval is stunning. Rich, deep and expansive, the Petit Cheval is outrageously good. In fact, it could easily be mistaken for a Cheval Blanc from anything less than a great vintage. The aromatics are alluring and the balance is sublime; all that really identifies this as a second wine is a bit of mid-palate depth. Sweet floral and spice accents extend the effortless, gracious finish.Vinous Media | 94 VMI wrote in my note on the 2020 Château Cheval Blanc Le Petit Cheval that this is "one hell of a second wine," and it has a kiss of the elegance and complexity found in the top cuvée. Black fruits, roasted herbs, graphite, and scorched earth notes all emerge from this ruby/purple-hued beauty, which has medium to full-bodied richness, ripe, polished tannins, and a great finish. It will drink nicely for 15+ years.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDThis second wine shows so many of the rich, dense qualities of the top wine. Bold black fruits are sustained by serious tannins and a dry core. It will age well. Drink from 2026Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEThe 2020 Le Petit Cheval offers up aromas of minty cherries, plums, raw cocoa, mint and spices, followed by a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and voluptuous palate underpinned by a broad-shouldered chassis of tannin. A blend of 59% Cabernet Franc and 41% Merlot, it’s a rather structured young Petit Cheval that will reward a bit of patience.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91+ RPSleek and solid, with a well-defined core of dark currant and black cherry puree lined with black licorice and sweet tobacco. Boasts black tea and warm paving stone accents through the finish. Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2033.Wine Spectator | 91 WS

One of the whites of the vintage, the 2020 Château Pape Clément Blanc is based on 62% Sauvignon Blanc, 33% Semillon, 4% Sauvignon Gris, and the remaining 1% Muscadelle, all of which was raised in a mix of new and used oak. This beauty stopped me in my tracks and offers a massive nose of honeyed limes, white flowers, tropical fruit, crushed stone, and orange marmalade. With the vintage’s vibrant sense of freshness, full-bodied richness, a stacked mid-palate, and a fabulous mouthfeel, this truly sensational white is an incredible achievement, and hats off to the team at Pape Clement! Give bottles 2-3 years and enjoy over the following two decades or so.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDI like the richness and focus to this with sliced cooked apple, lemon and light toffee character. Candied pineapple. Hints of meringue. Full-bodied and layered. Really delicious and flavorful now with a solid balance of phenolic structure. Classy. Agile. Drink after 2025 but hard to stay away.James Suckling | 97 JSThis is a step up, as it’s larger in scale, brighter and more defined than most of its brethren, featuring long tarragon and thyme threads that pull gooseberry, star fruit and white peach notes along. Offers lots of energy through the finish, which ripples with sel gris and oyster shell echoes offset by a hint of salted butter. Really gorgeous. Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Sauvignon Gris. Best from 2024 through 2032.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe 2020 Pape Clément Blanc has a bright nose with scents of orchard fruit, orange pith and lime cordial scents, well defined and focused. The palate is fresh and mineral-driven, quite taut, much less oaky than other vintages and displaying more terroir towards the finish. One of the best whites from this estate that I have tasted. Tasted three times with consistent notes.Vinous Media | 94 VMA 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.Decanter | 94 DEC

A tight, phenolic white with light tannins that give the wine form and balance. It’s full-bodied and lightly chewy with dried apple, lemon and peach. Minerally and chewy. Flavorful. From organic grapes. 90 sauvignon blanc, 5% sauvignon gris and 5% semillon.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDA tight, phenolic white with light tannins that give the wine form and balance. It’s full-bodied and lightly chewy with dried apple, lemon and peach. Minerally and chewy. Flavorful. From organic grapes. 90 sauvignon blanc, 5% sauvignon gris and 5% semillon.James Suckling | 95-96 JSButterscotch, vanilla, a soft honeyed caramel, lemon and orange notes with green apple. Quite bitter straight away, the lemon and orange rind and grapefruit juice elements all to the fore alongside a hit of bright, lemon juice acidity. Then it settles, almost closes, or narrows into a funnel, quite tight and sleek, definite tension there, but there’s power and structure still with elegance. It’s not giving, generous and approachable right now but this has been well made - really focused and polished. Body, freshness and structure with lovely hints of minerality and such a wide aerial, aerated finish. It’s serious - this is bold but with something so special about it. Ageing 50% new oak, 50% one year old barrels, 12 months with three months in vats before bottling.Decanter | 96 DECSuave and caressing in feel, this drapes beautifully, with creamed yellow apple, gooseberry and lemon curd notes on the flattering side, offset by hints of tarragon, blanched almond and salted butter on the racier side. The finish is enhanced with paraffin and smoke hints. Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Sauvignon Gris. Drink now through 2030. 2,400 cases made, 250 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 95 WSThe 2020 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is superb. Élevage has done wonders in lending energy and brilliance. The 2020 shows the soft curves of the warm vintage, but it has tons of energy, too. That makes for an absolutely brilliant, compelling white that delivers on so many levels. The 2020 offers enough approachability to drink well now, but also the energy to develop well in bottle for many years to come.Vinous Media | 95 VMA strong effort, the 2020 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc wafts from the glass with aromas of nectarine, pear, lemongrass, Sauvignon botanicals, toasted bread and baking spices. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered, it’s rich and concentrated, with ripe acids and chalky structuring extract. It’s not quite as vibrant and precise as the 2019, but it’s a success nonetheless.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94 RP