Tour Saint-Christophe - Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2020

Alexandre Ma

94

byAlexandre Mathe4/18/2023

Wine Advocate

93

byWilliam Kelleythe4/6/2023

The 2020 Tour Saint Christophe opens in the glass with aromas of sweet cherries, raspberries and petals, followed by a medium to full-bodied, lively and pure palate that's rich and fleshy, with generously extracted tannins asserting themselves on the finish. It's a modern, crowd-pleasing wine from clay-rich soils opposite Troplong Mondot in the commune Saint Christophe des Bardes.

Jeb DUNNUCK

96

byJeb Dunnuckthe3/30/2023

The 2020 Château Tour Saint Christophe showed spectacularly well, and based off past vintages, this shouldn't surprise anyone. Based on 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc raised in 40% new barrels (the balance is in second- and third-fill oak), it offers a full-bodied, incredibly pure, balanced style revealing subtle oak, terrific darker, almost blue fruits, lots of chocolate, leafy herb and mineral nuances, and gorgeous tannins. It's worth pointing out that this will be the last vintage made by the talented Jérôme Aguirre. This terrific Saint-Emilion will evolve for two decades.

The Wine Cellar Insider

95

byJeff Levethe3/22/2023

Dark black fruit, licorice, chocolate, espresso, smoke, and wet earth nuances create the complex aromatics. On the palate, the wine is lush, fresh, fruity, and layered with black, red, and blue fruits that feel as good as they taste while nuances of chocolate and spice show up in the finish. Drink from 2025-2045.

Alexandre Ma

94

byAlexandre Mathe3/15/2023

Wines Critic

94

byRaffaele Vecchionethe3/10/2023

Precise and essential showing notes of lavender, hibiscus and violet. A lot of hyacinth in the background. Full bodied, biting tannins and a hot, structured finale. Better from 2025.

Vinous

93

byAntonio Gallonithe2/24/2023

The 2020 Tour Saint Christophe has grown into an elegant, sophisticated Saint-Émilion. Red/purplish berry fruit, hard candy, mint, blood orange, pomegranate and spice all run through the 2020. Medium in body and polished, the 2020 has maybe a bit less explosive intensity than recent previous years, but plenty of class. Today, I find Tour Saint Christophe a bit subdued.

Vinous

92.00

byNeal Martinthe2/15/2023

The 2020 Tour Saint Christophe is powerful on the nose with intense black cherries, boysenberry and mint aromas - a nose that takes no prisoners! The palate is sweet and dense, but there are structure and sapidity here, a sense of underlying elegance that will surface with bottle age. This is definitely a Saint-Émilion for cellaring.

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

93

byJane Ansonthe1/16/2023

Powerful blue and black fruits, exuberant with layers of cocoa bean, espresso, smoked almond and mocha. Touch of bitterness on finish, turns into oyser shell freshness as it relaxes. Clay limestone vineyard located in St Christophe de Bardes, 20% vinified in barrel, the rest on cement tanks, 40% new oak, harvest September 14 to 28.

Vinous

93-95

byAntonio Gallonithe6/1/2021

Tour Saint Christophe just keeps getting better with each passing vintage. The 2020 is marked by vibrant red/purplish fruit, beams of minerality, sweet floral notes and a touch of savory intensity on the close. What impresses me most about the 2020 is the purity of flavors. The creamy, resonant finish is a thing of beauty.

Jeb DUNNUCK

93-96

byJeb Dunnuckthe5/28/2021

A wine I continue to buy in every vintage, the 2020 Château Tour Saint-Christophe looks to be another no-brainer for the Saint-Emilion lovers out there. Coming from a gorgeous, terraced vineyard on the eastern side of the appellation and based on 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, it has a perfumed, elegant, pure style in its darker cherry and cassis fruits as well as classic cedarwood, earth, and forest floor aromatics. Medium to full-bodied, balanced, and just beautiful on the palate, with terrifically integrated acidity and tannins, it’s going to round into form nicely with just short-term bottle age and have two decades of prime drinking. This wine is still resting in 40% new French oak and has an alcohol of 14.7% with a pH of 3.6.

Vinous

91-93

byNeal Martinthe5/27/2021

The 2020 Tour Saint Christophe was picked September 14–28, fermented without SO2 and matured in 40% new oak. My sample bottle was more reduced compared to its peers and required more aeration. Leaving it aside for 30–40 minutes, it unfolded to reveal a mélange of red and black fruit and hints of wild mint and boysenberry, all nicely focused, with floral top notes. The medium-bodied palate features sappy black fruit intermingling with orange peel and subtle marmalade notes. There is a core of sweet plummy fruit toward the finish, and a hint of brown sugar lingers on the aftertaste. This is a fine Saint-Émilion, but one where I hope to see a little more terroir expression on once in bottle.

Decanter.com

93

byJane Ansonthe5/25/2021

Clean and precisely-spliced black fruits, austerity in the tannins and a mocha, grilled coffee bean edging through the finish. Good quality and well balanced, intense to the point of slightly bitter on the final moments. Drinking Window 2025 - 2040

The Wine Cellar Insider

95-97

byJeff Levethe5/21/2021

Deep, and dark in color, and equally dark and deep in its fruit, the nose pops with perfectly ripe dark red and black fruits, licorice, smoke, cherry blossoms, crushed rocks and stones. The wine has depth, sensuality, luscious textures and layers of ripe, opulent fruits. The finish lingers with layers of black and red fruits with dark chocolate that feel as good as they taste. This could be the finest vintage of Tour Sant Christophe ever produced, and that is really saying something. The wine is made from blending 80% Merlot with 20% Cabernet Franc. You can age for 20-25 years. Or if you like, you can also enjoy this on the young side. 95-97

Wine Advocate

93-95

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe5/20/2021

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2020 Tour Saint Christophe stampedes out of the glass with powerful scents of baked blackberries, stewed black plums and boysenberries, followed by suggestions of cedar chest, mocha, tar and fertile loam, with lifted wafts of licorice and cardamom. The full-bodied palate is rich and densely packed with juicy black fruits, supported by velvety tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing long and opulent. In 2012, Hong Kong-based Peter Kwok purchased this vineyard located in Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes. The blend this year is 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, aging in French oak barriques, 40% new. It has an alcohol of 14.7% and a pH of 3.6.

Anthocyanes

92-94

byYohan Castaingthe5/11/2021

Le bouquet de Tour Saint Christophe 2020 est frais, dynamique, très gourmand avec de belles notes de fruits noirs et des arômes floraux à l'aération. En bouche, la texture est juteuse, linéaire, le grain de tanin est fin et délicat. A la fois frais et sur l'allonge. Une belle bouteille en devenir.

Falstaff

92-94

byPeter Moserthe5/10/2021

Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Zart tabakig unterlegte schwarze Beerenfrucht, zart nach Feigen und Pflaumen, dezente Kräuterwürze, kandierte Orangenzesten. Komplex, saftig, reife dunkle Kirschen, in- tegrierte Tannine, lebendig strukturiert, mineralisch-salziger Nachhall, verfügt über gute Länge.

Jamessuckling.com

95-96

byJames Sucklingthe4/28/2021

Full-bodied and creamy with lots of spice and walnut character. Lovely softness and purity. Black fruit at the end. Very fine tannins. Well-integrated.