15 May 2024

"The 2023 is a classic Bruno Borie wine that emphasizes textural opulence.  95-97 points."  Antonio Galloni, Vinous

Released en primeur this morning, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is offered at £744 per six, a 34% decrease on the 2022 opening price.  

Ducru made a real impression on us this year, standing out among its St-Julien peers for its dark, concentrated fruit core and exceptionally refined tannins, giving a creamy texture and finishing with lovely freshness on the palate. 

This is still a relatively focused Ducru when compared to the hotter vintages of recent years, but it brings some added Borie-luxuriance to the year.  Jane Anson sums up the wine beautifully, describing it as "Proof again that this is a great Cabernet year in this corner of Bordeaux, less velvet concentration than the 2022 Ducru perhaps, but more finesse and packed full of nuance, and a saline mouthwatering finish. 96 points."

Also released is the second wine, La Croix Ducru-Beaucaillou, at £364 per dozen, which we thought was only a small step away from the quality of grands vins at other estates, with lots of finesse and aromatic complexity, and impressive tannic structure for a deuxième vin.  Once again, Jane Anson captures the essence of tasting it from barrel: "this delivers a contrast of light and shade, and captures an effortless St Julien character.  93 points".

Offered en primeur, landing spring 2026.

Magnums available with £20 ex-VAT bottling surcharge per six, please enquire for other formats.

All previous offers of 2023 Bordeaux can be found here.

To order, e-mail us at sales@richardkihl.ltd.uk

 

Producer Profile

Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, St-Julien Grand Cru Classé

Château Ducru-Beaucaillou is a Deuxième Grands Cru Classé in St.-Julien.

One of the oldest estates in the Medoc, it dates back to the 13th century.  The second half of the name derives from the terroir, which is covered with large stones, 'beau-caillou', literally 'beautiful stones'.  Bertrand Ducru purchased the estate in 1795, adding his own name.  The property changed hands several times over the decades and was purchased in the 1940s by the Borie family (who also own Grand Puy Lacoste).

Bruno Borie took over in 2003 and has elevated the quality to the current high level, making this one of the 'super second' estates.  His personality is everywhere at the estate, including the distinctive pop art he installed in the cellars (tasting here feels a little incongruous, like visiting a rather louche nightclub).

The 75 hectares of vines are planted to 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot, averaging 35 years of age, at a density of10,000 vines per hectare. 

The second wine is La Croix Ducru-Beaucaillou (recently re-named, previously known as La Croix de Beaucaillou).  Lalande-Borie, a separate estate, ceased to exist from the 2018 vintage and has become in effect a third wine, Le Petit Ducru de Ducru-Beaucaillou.  Borie has managed production down from an average of 20,000 cases per annum in the 1980s to around half that today, just one aspect of his pursuit of quality.