Yeah, they had that last year as well
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Chateau Palmer has posted their 2020 vintage on Instagram. I am getting pumped for EP!
Here a few observations based on the few sources I checked so far (Jancis Robinson, James Suckling, JM Quarin and the Austrian wine magazine Falstaff):
a) It seems to be a right bank & Pessac year
b) overall quality is lower than in 16/18/19 (Jancis, Quarin are lower with less superstars; Suckling is always high) but still on a very good level above 2017
c) same elevated alcohol levels on the right bank as in 16/18/19
d) Pessac still has high alcohol levels with HB reaching crazy 15!
e) slightly lower alcohol levels in the rest of the left bank compared to 18/19, for some it’s even below 16 (but not all) - Lafite 12.8, Mouton 13.1
If its in line with 17, there’ll be basically no pressure to buy EP. 17 went down for the most part moving from EP to in bottle - I was burned on my small amount fo 17 purchases.
Haut Brion alcohol levels have been relatively high for some time. I have not bought any since 2008, as starting in 2009 if they hadn’t gone to the dark side, they were playing in the shadows.
Here is some additional commentary from Panos which is also consistent with a right bank/Merlot year. There is also speculation about a small price increase over 2019.
I have bought heavily on the 2016 but that had “just” 13.9%. 14.6% in 2018 & 2019. Which is definitely to high. But that “going to the dark side” is also reflected in the scores and on Cellartracker: beside the 2016, HB seems to have become the weakest first growth in recent years, with Mouton coming out of its relative mediocrity it had between the 87 and 08 vintages (for a first).
Agree. My guess is that we will be a rad above 2017 but that would be likely not enough to constitute a must buy with prices increasing over 2019.
But it’s early in the campaign… let’s wait and see
Yep.
Time to find out next week - apparently the madness starts next week.
A good wine but OMG how they have gotten the “boys” to market them!
The scores so far looks very good for Ch. Margaux.
Looks like another QPR vintage for DdC
I would advise you to forget Suckling’s scores. Just because he says it’s a 99-100 wine doesn’t mean it really has that kind of potential (just to say, he scored the 2017 99 points when it’s really nowhere near perfection).
agreed, if you’re basing off Suckling scores, my go-to joke is that I dont buy anythng that he gives less than a 96 to.
Tour St Christophe is out at Zachys for $32.99 75cl, $74.99 150cl, $159.99 for 300cl
Received the same, low price last year I received on those was 25.99…not a great start
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FWIW $31.99 is roughly the in-bond price it is being offered ex-London atm.
Your price last year must have been discounted - it was £276/12 ex-london last year which is basically the same price.
The pound is up considerably against the dollar from last year. Today it is 1.388/1; last year it was 1.244/1. That same 276/12 at last year’s rate would be $28.61. Same with the Euro, which is up 10% since last year against the dollar (watch out Total Wine futures buyers). Bordeaux wines for US buyers will be more expensive this year for that reason alone.
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Tour St. Christophe at 28.98 today
Is there an EP release structure when we know when certain wines are released?
I’m not aware of a set structure, but I imagine prior years would provide a possible structure