Winemaker Notes
Deep violet color with an abundance of red fruits, plum and cherry, and a touch of violets. The flavors are well concentrated giving depth and breadth to the palate, with a fresh, pleasant finish. Well-constructed.
Blend: 66% Merlot, 24% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petite Verdot
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
Aromas of currants and dark cherries with orange peel character. Medium-bodied with fine tannins and chocolate with hints of cedar. Crisp and vivid. 66% merlot, 24% cabernet sauvignon and 10% petit verdot. Drink or hold.
-
Vinous
The 2020 Madame de Beaucaillou was picked 11-30 September, matured 20% in new oak for an expected 12 months. It displays good intensity on the nose: blackberry, iodine and iris petals scents, just a scintilla of honey. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, displaying fine depth. The judicious use of new oak allows the black fruit to shine on the finish, with hints of pencil lead on the aftertaste. This is well worth seeking out. -Neal Martin
Barrel Sample: 89-91 -
Decanter
A new label that uses all vineyards owned by the Borie family outside of St-Julien - so those in Cussac, Listrac and a small portion of Moulis (both Lalande-Borie and Ducluzeau are now in here). Careful construction helps balance what are fairly tight tannins with savoury plum and blackberry fruits. Harvest from September 11. Concentrated and fresh, touches of tobacco leaf and woodsmoke as it opens. A yield of 22hl/ha, 20% new oak.
Barrel Sample: 90
Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou is named after the beautiful, large stones found in its unique wine-growing terroir. This exceptional ecosystem produces fine, elegant, tasty wines with a long finish - in short, archetypical Saint-Julien wines.
Perched on an exceptional site with incomparable views over the Gironde estuary, in the center of a hundred-year-old park, Ducru-Beaucaillou is a majestic, Victorian-style castle, which has, over time, become one of the great symbols of the Médoc. Unusual for Bordeaux, it is built directly above the barrel cellars, enveloping its owners, who have lived here for over sixty years.
Today, the estate is managed by the company Jean Eugène Borie SA, which is owned by Mrs Borie, her daughter Sabine Coiffe and her son Bruno-Eugène, CEO since 2003, the third generation of the Borie family to head the estate. There are very close links between this estate and the five families who have been its successive owners.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
While it claims the same basic landscape as the Medoc—only every so slightly elevated above river level—the Haut Medoc is home to all of the magnificent chateaux of the Left Bank of Bordeaux, creating no lack of beautiful sites to see.
These chateaux, residing over the classed-growth cru in the villages of Margaux, Moulis, Listrac, St-Julien, Pauillac and St. Estephe are within the Haut Medoc appellation. Though within the confines of these villages, any classed-growth chateaux will most certainly claim village or cru status on their wine labels.
Interestingly, some classed-growth cru of the Haut Medoc fall outside of these more famous villages and can certainly be a source of some of the best values in Bordeaux. Deep in color, and concentrated in ripe fruit and tannins, these wines (typically Cabernet Sauvignon-based) often prove the same aging potential of the village classed-growths. Among these, the highest ranked chateaux are Chateau La Lagune and Chateau Cantemerle.