2021 Château Lynch-Bages En Primeur
Released this morning at £510 per six bottles, 2021 Lynch-Bages seems to us to be on a par with recent top vintages. There was also an intimation of something new, of more precisely defined aromas, although this is such a brooding wine that it rarely shows its full colours when tasted from cask.
We tasted the 2021 in Lynch's brand new winery, where form follows function in a spectacular fashion, with enormous stainless steel vats on elevators to move the wine around by gravity (avoiding the loss of aroma caused by using pumps).
The result in 2021 is a wine which manages to be both sombre and powerful whilst offering more cool, classic aromas, which according to William Kelley include 'minty cassis, sweet berries, loamy soil, black truffle and cigar wrapper'. Neal Martin is on board with the '80s zeitgeist (following that other new release, the 'Top Gun' sequel), calling it a "very classy Lynch Bages with echoes of Jean-Michel Cazes' classics from the late eighties".
Described by Liv-Ex as "among the best value wines {from this estate} on the market today", this is a significant new vintage from Lynch-Bages and we can see every reason for adding some to your cellar. Below, you will also find Lynch's two sibling-estates, Haut Batailley and Ormes de Pez, released earlier this week.
One of six enormous 100 hectolitre elevator vats which bring the wine up from for pumping-over and racking ('delestage'), removing the need for pumps which can reduce aroma and flavour in the finished wine.
You can see full details of these and other new releases on our Bordeaux 2021 En Primeur offer page, here.
Offered en primeur landing spring 2024. Magnums available, other formats on request.
To order, e-mail us at sales@richardkihl.ltd.uk
Producer Profile
Château Lynch-Bages, Cru Classé Pauillac
Château Lynch-Bages is a Cinquièmes Cru Classé in Pauillac, founded in 1749 by Thomas Lynch in the villages of Bages. Lynch's father John has emigrated in 1691 from Galway in Ireland to Bordeaux. The estate changed hands in the nineteenth century and was eventually purchased in the 1930s by Jean-Charles Cazes. In 1972, his grandson Jean-Michel Cazes took over, followed by his son Jean-Charles. The technical director is Nicholas Labenne.
The 90 hectares are just outside Pauillac itself, with the vineyard on the Bages gravel ridge, looking down on the Gironde, planted to 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. Around 25,000 cases are made in an average year. The second wine is 'Echo de Lynch-Bages'.
Construction of a new winery began in 2018 and 2020 is the first vintage to be made in it.
See Jean-Charles Cazes introduce the new winery at Lynch-Bages:
| RED | 2021 | 1 case | Château Lynch Bages | 75cl | £395 per case of 6 | Château Lynch Bages 2021 / 1 case / 75cl £395 per case of 6 |
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Tasting Notes"The 2021 Lynch Bages is a brooding wine. Black cherry, leather, spice and menthol add to its decidedly somber personality. It will be interesting to see how the 2021 develops during élevage. Today, the 2021 comes across as dark and heavy, with the oak not fully integrated, and less of the suave finesse that is perhaps the key Lynch Bages signature. 92-94 points" Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com------"This is impressive, reduction on the first nose but it clears to show gentle smoked oak, bitter cocoa beans and liqourice, giving balance the the fresh acidities that stud the blackberry and raspberry fruits. This is powerful, with a structure that feels similar to the 2014 or the 2008 - a little subdued and austere, but with ageing potential. A high tannin index of 90IPT. Harvest September 27 Lynch through to October 9. One of the best in Pauillac, finishing up with chewy tannins. 94 points" janeanson.com------"The second vintage vinified in the Cazes family's new winery, the 2021 Lynch-Bages unwinds in the glass with aromas of minty cassis, sweet berries, loamy soil, black truffle and cigar wrapper, framed by nicely integrated new oak. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated and muscular, it's a serious, layered, powerful, youthfully structured wine that will come together beautifully with maturation in barrel. 93-95 points" William Kelley, RobertParker.com------"The 2021 Lynch-Bages, picked at 34hL/ha and matured in 75% new oak for a planned 18 months, has an outstanding bouquet, beautifully-defined and sensual, a mixture of black and blueberry fruit, very fragrant. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy tannins, good body and density, quite precise with a tensile finish. This fans out nicely on the finish. A very classy Lynch Bages with echoes of Jean-Michel Cazes' classics from the late eighties. 13.14% alcohol. 94-96 points" Neal Martin, Vinous.com------"This is really cool to smell, with lead pencil shavings, iron filings and oyster shells. Blackcurrants, too. Full to medium body with layers of firm tannins, but a dusty and powdery texture, too. Lovely finish. 67% cabernet sauvignon, 25% merlot, 5% petit verdot and 3% cabernet franc. 96-97 points" jamessuckling.com |
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