Pape Clément rouge - Pessac-Léognan 2020

Wine Spectator

95 / 100

par James Molesworth le 30/11/2022

This is snazzed up with flashy toast, but there's ample mulberry, cassis and plum compote fruit to soak it up, while notes of licorice and sweet spice fill in the background. A late tug of warm earth keeps this grounded. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2028 through 2038.

TASTED

96 / 100

par Andreas Larsson le 06/07/2021

Pure and aromatic nose with bay leaf, sage blending red and dark fruit. The palate shows its usual concentration and depth with fine layers, refined tannin, a good dose of freshness underneath and a brilliantly long finish.

Le Figaro

95-97 / 100

le 02/06/2021

Un nez attrayant de myrtilles et de prune confite, légèrement animal, où l'on retrouve l'habituelle opulence de Pape Clément, mais de façon moins marquée que dans les millésimes précédents. Une bouche très harmonieuse, d'une grande précision, avec une onctuosité prolongée d'une finale saline.

Vinous

95-97 / 100

par Antonio Galloni le 01/06/2021

The 2020 Pape Clément is so impressive. Red cherry, plum, cedar, mint, tobacco, blood orange and rose petal all build as the 2020 opens in the glass. Vibrant and beautifully delineated, the 2020 has a ton to offer. The 2020 exudes purity, energy and breathtaking balance. It is one of the finest recent vintages I can remember tasting.

Jeb DUNNUCK

97-99 / 100

par Jeb Dunnuck le 28/05/2021

Ranking with the top wines of the vintage, the dense purple-hued 2020 Château Pape Clement offers a sensational bouquet of pure crème de cassis interwoven with notes of liquid violets and classy oak. Possessing flawless balance, full-bodied richness, and ultra-fine tannins, it excels in this vintage and has a pretty, elegant, yet also layered and concentrated profile. It will drink well with just short-term cellaring yet evolve gracefully for 20-30 years. I was able to taste this on multiple occasions, and it always checked in near the upper end of the scale. This is a gorgeous wine in the making.

Vinous

95-97 / 100

par Neal Martin le 27/05/2021

The 2020 Pape Clément, which I afforded an hour’s aeration, has a very precise bouquet of pure blackberry, cedar, mint and violet aromas, quite discreet but paradoxically intense; these aromas are very seductive. The palate is medium-bodied with ripe, lithe tannins framing wonderfully pure black fruit laced with crushed stone and a judicious touch of white pepper. Seamless in texture, this is a sophisticated Pape Clément in the making, an outstanding wine that should age brilliantly in bottle.

Decanter.com

94 / 100

par Jane Anson le 25/05/2021

Powerful in colour, this has the glass staining red and purple colours that Pape Clément does so well. Touches of liquorice and cocoa beans, well handled, this gives power with one hand but takes it away with the other as the austerity and fresh mint leaf comes to the fore. Impressive, a really enjoyable, classically wrought but still full of concentration Pape Clément. Savoury, there is nothing too exuberant in the fruits but it exudes deft confidence.

The Wine Cellar Insider

87-89 / 100

par Jeff Leve le 21/05/2021

Medium-bodied, soft, silky and fresh, with refined, polished red fruits accompanied by touches of tobacco, espresso, spice and cocoa are found here. Forward, early drinking and already charming, you can enjoy this on release. 87-89

Wine Advocate

96-98 / 100

par Lisa Perrotti-Brown le 20/05/2021

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2020 Pape Clement comes barreling out of the glass with bold notes of cassis, plum preserves and licorice, giving way to scents of cedar chest, crushed rocks, charcoal and pencil lead. The medium to full-bodied palate is tightly coiled with beautiful tension and a firm, finely grained texture locking in the layers of black fruits and minerals, finishing with great length and energy. The blend this year is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Merlot, aging mainly in French oak barriques, 66% new, with about 10% aging in large oak foudres. The wine will spend approximately 18 months in barrels.

Anthocyanes

94-96 / 100

par Yohan Castaing le 11/05/2021

Changement de style radical pour cette propriété qui diminue son bois apparement. Le bouquet est frais, légèrement grillé, très fruits noirs bien murs avec des notes de cerise noire et de cassis. En bouche, c'est dense mais parfaitement équilibré avec une texture charnue et des tanins structurants mais qui ne sont plus dominés par le bois. Est-ce un changement stylistique ou le millésime ? Penchons pour la première solution, pour le plus grand bien de cette magnifique propriété.

Bernard Burtschy

94-95 / 100

par Bernard Burtschy le 10/05/2021

Falstaff

95-97 / 100

le 10/05/2021

Dunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarter Ockerrand. Attraktive frische Herzkirschenfrucht, dunkle Waldbeeren, Cassis, zart nach Edelholz, feine tabakige Nuancen, ein facettenreiches Bukett. Saftig, komplex, sehr elegant, verfügt über Frische und reife Tannine, mineralisch und sehr gut anhaftend, tolle Balance und Länge, bereits in der Jugend sehr verführerisch, sicheres Entwicklungspoten- zial.

My Bettane + Desseauve

94 / 100

par Bettane & Desseauve le 07/05/2021

Jamessuckling.com

96-97 / 100

par James Suckling le 23/04/2021

Superb aromas of blackberries, crushed stones, iodine and graphite. Full-bodied with ultra fine tannins and a balanced finish. Such length and beauty. Very close to the 2019 in quality.