2018 Château Beauséjour Duffau

Description

100   Jane Anson
“The 10th vintage under the Nicolas Thienpont team, and as it has turned out the penultimate one. Impossible to leave out of my top 50 for laying down because this is easily one of the wines of the vintage, and should form part of any cellar that is looking to reflect the best of 2018. Black cherry and damson fruit roll out layer upon layer, with slate, crushed rocks and baked earth ensuring the progress through the palate is slow and steady, with mouthwatering freshness building up as you go. It’s serious and needs time, but it’s fantastic, and takes you right inside this discreet corner of the St Emilion limestone plateau. Half the normal yield, down in the mid-20hl/h.”

99   James Suckling
“Aromas of blackcurrant, ripe blackberry, black olive, oyster shell and black tea. Some ash and dried flowers, too. It’s medium-to full-bodied with firm, tight-grained tannins. Sleek and compact with a savory, mineral finish. Great length and depth. Wonderful texture. Such precision. Try from 2026.” (3/2021)

97   Jeb Dunnuck
“While the 2018 Château Beauséjour (Duffau-Lagarrosse) doesn’t match the 2009 or 2016, it’s certainly not far off. I wish every reader could taste this beautiful, age-worthy Saint-Emilion, and they should certainly have bottles in the cellar. Coming from a gorgeous hillside terroir of clay and limestone soils outside of Saint-Emilion and a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, it reveals a dense purple hue as well as classic Saint-Emilion minerality in its cassis and blue fruits as well as notes of damp earth, truffle, tobacco, and spring flowers. With full-bodied richness, a concentrated, backward, structured mouthfeel, lots of tannins, and just a brilliant mix of richness and elegance, it needs a good 5-7 years in the cellar and will have 40-50 years of prime drinking.” (3/2021)

97   Antonio Galloni for Vinous
“The 2018 Beauséjour Héritiers Duffau-Lagarrosse is a huge wine that is going to need a number of years to come into its own. A wine of unreal concentration and pure power, the 2018 takes over all the senses with its commanding presence. Black cherry, chocolate, licorice, gravel, cured meat and cloves all scream out of the glass. This wild, untamed Saint-Émilion needs cellaring. I imagine it will still be a spectacular wine many decades from now. As was the case from barrel, the typically imposing tannins are nearly buried by the sheer concentration of the fruit.” (3/2021)