Domaine des Lambrays, Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru 2020

After over a year in bottle, the 2020 Clos des Lambrays was still somewhat impenetrable, with an inky black colour and concentrated aromas of plum and mulberry touched with wood spice, violets, and earth. The texture is dense, almost massive, yet not forbidding, and has an immensely appealing velvety edge. 2020 was the earliest vintage ever, picked from 20-26 August as compared to 23 August to 2 September in 2003). This historically hot, dry year was the first year of biodynamic viticulture.

Drink 2026 - 2080

The 2020 Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru has real intensity on the nose. It’s very well-defined with layers of black cherry and blue fruit, mineral-driven with hints of violet emerging with aeration. But this is backward and holding itself back. The palate has exquisite balance. It’s a little granular texture, lightly spiced bordering on peppery, building beautifully in the mouth to exert an insistent grip on the finish. There is a grandeur about this Grand Cru that keeps you entranced, but it will demand time in bottle.

Drink 2030 - 2060

Revisited in bottle, the 2020 Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru unwinds in the glass with a deep bouquet of cassis, wild berries, rose petals, sweet spices and dark chocolate. Full-bodied, layered and concentrated, it's rich and textural, with an ample core of fruit, beautifully powdery tannins and lively acids, concluding with a long, mouthwatering finish. Youthfully reserved, like many 2020s, this nonetheless stands out as the finest Clos des Lambrays of the 21st century—for now!

Drink 2030 - 2055