St-Julien 2020 in bottle: overview plus top-scoring wines

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.

Detailed and delicate, this has a seductive charm to it, slowly displaying scented blueberries and raspberries, before layers of salty minerality, liquorice, and cooling blue fruits come into play as well as tobacco and liquorice adding a savoury touch. It’s not immediately upfront - more calm and collected, slowly growing in stature and presence. Tannins are fine but mouthcoating, giving the structure, this isn't a light wine, but it's supremely elegant and excellently textured. Impressive complexity and drama here, still very serious but it's sublime too. A luminous wine I'd love to own.

Perfumed touches on the nose, quite high toned, blackcurrant but almost liqueur with rose petal and candy floss nuances. On the point of ripeness, still tense, not hugely expansive in the mouth or particularly weighty but juicy with a really confident energy to it - vibrant and compelling. Tannins are perfectly integrated, so fine, this has a silky overall texture with a hint of grip coming towards the mid palate. Driven and straight, not deviating from the core. Almost unfriendly, but you know this has been well made - it’s sleek, with sinewy muscles, just caged right now needing time to come around. I love the precision to the elements, there’s such a sharp attention to detail with a liquorice, slate and pencil lead tang. The flavours need coaxing a little; this is a sleeping beauty waiting to awaken, but when it does it will be delicious because of the precision. A wonderful wine that makes you really think about how it’s going to evolve.

Scented and perfumed - violet tones, almost a touch of liqueur fruit to the nose, aromatic with dark chocolate touches too. Bright and shining, this is sleek, quite delicately displayed in terms of texture but this has layers of savoury elements - liquorice, clove, tobacco with bright red fruits and dark bramble fruits. Clean and compelling. Well made with tons of confidence. So complete, juicy in a heady seductive way, this is deeply scented, driven and brooding but perfectly weighted to keep the right side of being too heavy. Refreshing but devilishly charming - it leaves a clean feeling in the mouth where you just want to taste it again.

Supple and generous with mouthwatering acidity, though really quite tannic at this point which does cover up some of the nuance. I like the texture, the frame and the weight, it's clean, polished and well worked, not overdone at all, but this has a sense of potent seduction in the flavours, rich blackcurrant, perfumed and scented. Detailed with lots of stony, slate, and wet stone elements giving a wonderful terroir influence. It's not as immediately charming as the 2019, the tension still prominent, but this will be brilliant in 5-10 years.

Sleek and seductive, quite highly charged with such a potent perfume and black bramble fruit aroma on both the nose and palate. Silky, smooth, suave and confident, this is a supremely gorgeous wine. Not weighty as such, but there is intensity in the layers of fruit and acidity with a cool, refreshing core underpinned by salty stones and liquorice elements. Elegant and refined, pulsing with energy, charm, delicacy and detail.

Liquorice on the nose with blue fruit aromas - cool and expressive. Quite tight on the palate, the tannins making the impact right now and the style still very much on the savoury edge. Good acidity here, but it’s coming off a little sharp, giving angles to the palate though given some cushioning by ripe tannins. I do love the red and black berry elements alongside pine notes, cedar, coffee, liquorice and tobacco, the wood flexing its muscles. Softly classic with nice St-Julien character.

Tobacco, dark chocolate and scented flowers on the nose - beautiful aromatic display. Ripe and concentrated fruit but with clarity and precision alongside savoury elements of coffee, cola and creamy blackcurrants. Tannins are rich and grippy edged by liquorice and a salty minerality giving St-Julien typicity. Charming with energy and poise.

Aromatically very expressive on the nose. Perfumed with ripe fruits and floral characters. Supple and juicy, a lovely lifeforce and bounce. Tannins are plush yet plump giving a roundness to the expression letting the bright red fruits shine and acidity keep everything lifted. Has a joyous quality, so easy to like this - refreshing and enjoyable. The texture and weight is great, lovely medicinal edges as well as some salinity with cooling minty touches and a long finish. Really well worked, not pushed and delivered with poise. It’s lightly framed in terms of texture, more layered vertically than wide, giving an aerial freshness throughout. 

Quite reduced on the nose, a salty oyster shell and iron nuance with slightly granular tannins. Fruit is ripe and this has a deep, rich and wide structure and frame with firm tannins, a cool minty freshness and good balance. Powerful and concentrated, an opulent showing with floral notes, blackcurrant jam, dried herbs and liquorice. Impressive but will take a while to soften and fully shine.

Gorgeous milk chocolate on the perfumed nose which also shows roses and blackcurrants. Supple and agile, this flows nicely in the mouth. Grainy texture, the flavours of medicinal herbs, anise, clove, a touch of liquorice with dark bramble fruits spread out across the mouth with a little bitterness on the cheeks and tongue, but good density and focus and I love the powdery tannins. Juicy, precise and focused. A nice effort with good overall freshness. I like the comforting, texture. A blend of 78% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot. Aged 12 months, 30% new oak.

The long and polished 2020 Talbot leads with great fragrance followed by black fruit notes and even a hint of tar. Overall, it is less muscular, but still concentrated, and more refined than the densely paced 2018, conveying a classic St-Julien temperament. Its suaveness makes it surprisingly approachable even now. The energy and refinement of the 2020, like the 2019, make one wonder whether Laporte consciously turned down the volume after the massive 2018.

Beautiful fragrance, so floral and open, pink and purple flowers with red and black fruits. Lively, expressive but rich, heavily scented with hints of milk chocolate. Supple, this has energy from the start, yet there is an immediate density and a savoury edge of black liquorice and aniseed with some fresh mint and a continuing florality. Still a little exuberant, coiled and pent up, but detailed and nuanced. The fruit purity and precision is excellent, the weight is perfect and this has an undercurrent of soft salinity, a minerality with wet stone nuances. Will take a few years to come around, still with a kick of heat on the finish that suggests it’s a serious wine with more to give. Such a long finish.

Really perfumed, lovely rose and violet notes on the nose, floral, aromatic and expressive. Supple, round and quite tense, this has a buzzy energy to it, a little lean and spiced right now, some coarse, grippy tannins, but nice vertical layering. Well framed with clear power but well controlled with freshness and succulence to the blackcurrant and blueberry fruits.

Wood aspects on the nose: vanilla, cinnamon, toast and caramel. Ripe, but clean and tight, there’s depth and intensity to the fruit which is focused and narrow, giving a sleek but tense frame and drive of flavours. There is underlying acidity and a juiciness that comes through, and this has a long, persistent flavour but it does remain quite narrow. Nicely worked and restrained. It grows more and more, but the wood is still quite present and needs to settle. Just feels a little dry, tight, high-toned and spicy which is slightly off-putting. 

Vibrant, deep and darkly fruited, a touch of prune and raisin but also lots of herbal-edged blackcurrant and black cherries. Liquorice stands out, as does wet slate, pencil lead and salty stones; lots going on here. It's not quite there in terms of harmony but I like the impression. It feels a little tense and youthful still, while displaying delightful perfumed elements and a crushed velvet texture. Wide and long, this feels like it will be super-seductive in a couple of years.

Textured tannins make the first impact, slightly granular and plump at the same time so the ripe red berry fruit has a frame and bouncy platform. Acidity is lively giving the energy and this has a salty mineral tang that comes in on the finish adding nuance. Nicely constructed, a little savoury still towards the end but good potential for easy, unfussy drinking. Eric Boissenot consultant.

Super smooth and sleek, this has soft acidity - certainly not too much at the fore - but nicely evident giving frame to the red cherry and strawberry fruit. This feels clean and well worked, nicely detailed with elegance. It's not showing off at all but delivering a delicate version of the vintage with lots of drinkability. Slightly stony, mineral and liquorice finish. Eric Boissenot consultant.

Seriously perfumed and aromatic on the nose. Taught and streamlined but with a lovely deep, rich, ripe fruit flavour. This is nicely defined with a tense core and focus from start to finish while the ripe blackcurrant, perfumed black cherries and strawberries are lifted by high acidity that has bite and a touch of sourness. Tannins are fine and give the frame. Fresh and lifted finished. A touch severe right now with the acidity and sense of tension but this has nice potential. Eric Boissenot consultant.