Critic Ratings & Tasting Notes
Yves Beck – (100/100)
“The 2020 reveals itself with a finesse that underscores the trend of Ducru’s recent vintages. There is such a focus on subtlety and detail that you find yourself looking for the sparkle, on the nose, that one has known at Ducru. Thus, the bouquet unfolds with incredible subtlety, rare relevance, and an obvious link to the terroir. The wine is dense, elegant, powerful, charming, and broad. Its tannins are of great finesse, with a touch of bitterness on the finish that serves to prolong the pleasure, stretch the length, and spotlight the potential. A wine that will require patience. We will have to wait. It’s so wholesome to be reminded that, in the 21st century, at the dawn of the 3rd millennium, some things still demand patience. It’s not only cultural, but societal! In the meantime, we can sip the 2013s and 2017s!”
Jeb Dunnuck (100/100)
“Another legendary Ducru Beaucaillou in the making, the 2020 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou hasn’t budged since release. Full-bodied, concentrated, and layered, it has incredible purity in its cassis and darker, almost blue fruits, some classic yet primary tobacco, graphite, and mineral notes, a dense mid-palate, and awesome length on the finish. It’s very much in the style of the 2010 and deserves at least a decade of bottle age. I won’t be around to taste it, but I suspect this will still be offering pleasure on its 100th birthday.”
Decanter (99/100)
“Evocative and moreish, a Ducru that beguiles and delights from the start with a scented nose full of cedar, rose, violets, cherries and damsons — a riot of Cabernet typicity. Vibrant and pulsing on the palate, this has grip and intention from the get-go. Massy, full and wide in the mouth — there’s density and this is broad but it’s delicate too — a sense of weightlessness with such movement and energy and a soft, sweet, succulent grip throughout. Powerful with present tannins that unravel slowly so there’s time to appreciate the details as they come. A thoughtful and intellectual wine that leaves a smile on your face.”
The Wine Independent (99/100)
“The 2020 Ducru-Beaucaillou, 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, is deep garnet-purple in color. Classic notes of cassis, cedar, and graphite open out to nuances of menthol, tilled soil, tobacco, and violets. The medium-bodied palate is refreshing and savory, with grainy tannins and a long minerally finish. This is classic Ducru.”
Jeff Leve – The Wine Cellar Insider (98/100)
“Richly colored, the wine delivers a complex nose of cigar box, tobacco leaf, wet forest floor, camphor, red and black currants, blackberry and creme de cassis. Supple, sensuous, elegant and concentrated, the wine focuses on its refined character, purity of fruit and silky textures. Long, vibrant and incredibly refined, the finish builds as it lingers. This gem should start to really unfurl after its 10th birthday and provide fabulous drinking for 25-35 years after that. Not as powerful as some recent vintages, instead this is a stunningly graceful Ducru Beaucaillou. Produced from blending 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, 13.5% ABV. Picking took place September 11 – September 30. Yields were low at close to 30 hectoliters per hectare.”
James Suckling – (97/100)
“Blackcurrants and blueberries with violets and crushed stone. Extremely aromatic. Full-bodied but very tight and reserved, with racy, almost steely tannins. Some subtle sweet fruit in the center palate. Great transparency and clarity. Super precision here. Vertical and polished. Try after 2028.”
A silky and refined fine red wine from Saint-Julien
The estate
An iconic Saint-Julien Cru Classé, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou oversees a prestigious terroir. In the past 300 years, six families have worked ceaselessly to elevate this estate to the international reputation it enjoys today. A property of the Borie family since 1941, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou takes its name from its terroir of “beautiful pebbles” made up of Gunzian gravel. Under the leadership of Bruno Borie, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou has become one of the greatest red wines of Saint-Julien. Vintage after vintage, the estate’s wines have delighted fans of the Médoc around the world.
The vineyard
A particularity of Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is the exceptional quality of its vineyard planted on Bordeaux’s Left Bank. The vines are planted in Günzian and Pyrenean gravel soils deposited by the Gironde estuary nearly two million years ago. From these poor soils, exceptional wines are born.
The wine
For the 2020 vintage, the Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is adorned with a new label celebrating the 300th anniversary of this esteemed Saint-Julien estate.
The vintage
A mild winter advanced early bud break. The flowering in May and rapid, even fruit set also occurred early. Spring was marked by frost at the end of March, hail in mid-April and significant mildew pressure in early June. Günzian gravel soils provided adequate drainage during the heavy storms in late April and early June.
While the summer conditions were hot and dry, the reserves in the subsoil provided the entire vineyard with sufficient nourishment. The rain that began on August 15 helped the fruit reach optimal ripeness. Rainy nights helped maintain cool temperatures, thus preserving the bright acidity of the fruit and developing the aromatic richness of the grapes. The proximity to the Atlantic Ocean and the Gironde estuary regulates the hot weather and contributes to the excellent health of the vineyard.
The alternation in September of cool nights and sunny days helped refined the ripening of the grapes under the best conditions. A peak in temperatures before the harvest refined the concentration of the berries. Despite lower yields than in recent years, the harvest was of high quality, yielding grapes with thick, rich, colorful skins and very elegant tannins.
Winemaking and ageing
Ageing lasted 18 months, exclusively in new French oak barrels. Ullage was carried out regularly during the first six months of ageing, as well as “à l’esquive” rackings every three months, for a total of seven rackings during the ageing process.
Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon (81%)
Merlot (19%).
