Léoville Barton - Saint-Julien 2020

Vinous

96

byNeal Martinthe2/28/2025

The 2020 Léoville Barton has a very concentrated and opulent bouquet with lavish blueberry and bilberry fruit and a veneer of new oak that will be subsumed in the near future. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent, ripe tannins. Cedar and touches of baking powder infuse the layered red fruit, segueing into a spicy, persistent finish. Classy. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.

The Wine Independent

98

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe12/20/2023

The 2020 Leoville Barton has a deep garnet-purple color. It is incredibly primary and youthful with expressive scents of crème de cassis, ripe juicy plums, and black raspberries, opening out to hints of vanilla pod, coffee, star anise, and tilled soil. Medium-bodied, the palate is beautifully restrained, with lovely tension and firm, very fine-grained tannins, finishing so long and achingly graceful. Wow!

Alexandre Ma

96

byAlexandre Mathe4/18/2023

Wine Advocate

95

byWilliam Kelleythe4/6/2023

A superb wine, the 2020 Léoville Barton exhibits generous aromas of blackberries and crème de cassis mingled with hints of licorice, pencil shavings and classy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, broad and fleshy, with a concentrated core of fruit, sweet tannins and a nicely defined finish, it bears some similarities with the estate's demonstrative 2000 vintage, even if the two growing seasons were quite different. I suspect it will tighten up with more time in bottle, hence the plus sign next to my score, but right now, the 2020 is unusually accessible out of the gates.

Wine Spectator

96

byJames Molesworththe3/31/2023

A bold, strapping young wine, with vivid plum, cassis, kirsch and black licorice notes that meld steadily as they cruise through, carried by a bolt of graphite and finishing with a flourish of violet, anise and apple wood. Mouthwatering in the end. Built for the cellar. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2030 through 2045. 9,100 cases made.

Jeb DUNNUCK

97

byJeb Dunnuckthe3/30/2023

The flagship from this great château, the 2020 Château Léoville Barton checks in as 85.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14.5% Merlot that saw 60% new French oak. It has fabulous aromatics of crème de cassis, graphite, liquid violets, spring flowers, and background oak. Full-bodied and concentrated on the palate, its purity of fruit is just about off the chart, it has a great mid-palate, and enough tannins to warrant 7-8 years of bottle age. This is another sensational wine from this team that will have 30-40 years of overall longevity.

The Wine Cellar Insider

96

byJeff Levethe3/22/2023

Deeply colored, this is a powerful wine with all the fresh, ripe, black and dark red fruits you could hope for, along with nuances of tobacco leaf, cedar, flowers, cigar box, espresso, smoke and creme de cassis to boot. This is the perfect blend of classy and classic, with ripe, elegant, tannins, length, purity, vibrancy and complexity that insures this is going to offer fabulous drinking for decades. Drink from 2027-2060.

Alexandre Ma

96

byAlexandre Mathe3/15/2023

Wines Critic

97

byRaffaele Vecchionethe3/10/2023

Very elegant and refined in the sensory profile alternating notes of rose petals, mandarin juice, cut cedar, linden, gardenias, magnolias and medicinal herbs. Medium to full bodied, velvety tannins of splendid quality and an honest, genuine finish which lengthens in a modern manner. A blend of 85.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14.5% Merlot. Better from 2026.

Vinous

96

byAntonio Gallonithe2/24/2023

The 2020 Léoville Barton is compelling. It offers up a gorgeous mix of vintage 2020 intensity married to the classicism Léoville-Barton have come to expect. Blackberry, graphite, dried herbs, menthol and dark spice abound. Whereas so many Saint-Juliens are exuberant in 2020, Léoville-Barton is very much buttoned up, showing just a twinkle of mischief that lets you know the best is yet to come.

Vinous

95

byNeal Martinthe2/15/2023

In some ways, the 2020 Léoville Barton has become more serious than when I encountered it from barrel. It's lost its puppy fat and delivers quite intense blackberry, blueberry and incense aromas, a little oak to be assimilated yet still very focused. The palate is medium-bodied with a "coolness" on the entry, taut yet deep with a core of black fruit that lacquers that mouth. It's like a Bentley purring on the finish that is very persistent - an outstanding Léoville Barton.

Jamessuckling.com

96

byJames Sucklingthe1/16/2023

Aromas of dark berries, ash, tar, blackcurrants and lead pencil, following through to a medium to full body, with firm and integrated tannins and a medium, chewy finish. Needs four to six years to soften and come together. Very tight and nicely structured. Try in 2027 and onwards.

Wine Spectator

96

byJames Molesworththe11/30/2022

A bold, strapping young wine, with vivid plum, cassis, kirsch and black licorice notes that meld steadily as they cruise through, carried by a bolt of graphite and finishing with a flourish of violet, anise and apple wood. Mouthwatering in the end. Built for the cellar. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2030 through 2045. 

TASTED

96

byAndreas Larssonthe7/6/2021

Very dark and inky fruit, ripe blackberry, cassis, fine oak and tobacco. Very nice density and weight with great proportions, a fine tannic freshness, layers of crunchy fruit, layered spiciness and a long dense finish really classic Bordeaux at its best.

Vinous

94-96

byAntonio Gallonithe6/1/2021

The 2020 Léoville-Barton marries the richness of the vintage with the classically restrained style that is so typical of Léoville-Barton. Graphite, licorice and dark spice are all laced throughout a core of inky dark fruit. The 2020 is powerful and linear, with tons of depth lying in reserve, just waiting to emerge. I won't be surprised if Léoville-Barton is one of the last Saint-Juliens to enter its prime.

Jeb DUNNUCK

95-97

byJeb Dunnuckthe5/28/2021

Deep purple – almost blue – in color, the 2020 Château Léoville Barton offers up an exotic, vibrant, perfumed nose that carries loads of pure cassis fruit interwoven with violets, sappy green herbs, and floral aromatics. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and concentrated, this thick, chewy, powerful Saint-Julien has good acidity, building, firm, yet ripe tannins, and a great finish. My money is on this requiring 15 years to come anywhere close to maturity. It doesn’t get any more classic Barton than this.

Vinous

94-96

byNeal Martinthe5/27/2021

The 2020 Léoville Barton was picked September 15–16 and matured in 70% new oak. It is one of the best vintages that I have encountered in barrel. Wow! This shoots from the glass with beautifully defined black fruit, mineral-rich aromas, pixelated with laser-like focus. The palate is medium-bodied with chiseled tannins, a perfect line of acidity, layers of vibrant, vivacious black fruit and a very persistent finish that is pure class. If you don’t have this in your cellar, then there will be a Léoville Barton–shaped hole to fill.

Decanter.com

94

byJane Ansonthe5/25/2021

Packed full of black chocolate shavings, liquorice, cocoa bean, concentrated cassis and bilberry fruits. Good quality, will bed down and age extremely well, with depth and character but also classicism. As with many in this corner of the Médoc peninsula in this vintage, the austerity to the tannins is very much to the fore right now. May be upscored when in bottle.

The Wine Cellar Insider

95-97

byJeff Levethe5/21/2021

Inky in color, it takes only one sniff to see how much ripe fruit is packed in here. Blackberry, currants, smoky cherries, tobacco leaf, cedar, flowers and creme de cassis aromas come on strong. The wine is full-bodied, bold, powerful, tannic, balanced and fresh. The palate filling finish is long, energetic, rich and expansive. This is a superb vintage of Leoville Barton that will need at least a decade in the cellar and will age and evolve for another 2-3 decades after that. 95-97

Wine Advocate

93-95

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe5/20/2021

The 2020 Léoville Barton reveals a deep purple-black color, springing from the glass with vivacious scents of crushed black cherries, cassis and black raspberries, plus hints of cinnamon toast, wild sage, red roses and sassafras. The medium to full-bodied palate is packed with muscular black fruits, framed by grainy tannins and loads of freshness, finishing long and perfumed.

Anthocyanes

92-94

byYohan Castaingthe5/11/2021

Le nez composé de fruits noirs et de touches florales est éclatant et frais. Mure, cassis, légèrement épices et délicatement boisé. Des notes de graphite se font jour en bouche avec des tanins fermes et structurants, une allonge rafraichissante et une belle finale. Belle bouteille qui va s'épanouir agréablement dans les 10 à 15 années à venir.

Bernard Burtschy

95-96

byBernard Burtschythe5/10/2021

Falstaff

94-96

byPeter Moserthe5/10/2021

Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Mit feiner Kräuterwürze und Edelholz unterlegte schwarze Waldbeerfrucht, ein Hauch von Lakritze und Cassis, tabakige Nuancen. Saftig, feine Süße, reife Kirschen, reife, tragende Tannine, gute Frische, schokoladiger Touch im Abgang, gute Länge, sichere Refepotenzial.