The 2020 Margaux Grand Vin is ravishing. At once refined and exuberant, Margaux beautifully captures the spirit of the vintage. Layers of dark fruit, spice, lavender, crushed flowers and leather open graciously, revealing a wine of uncommon depth and finesse. The 100% new oak is not at all perceptible. Enveloping on the palate, with striking resonance and exceptional balance, the 2020 is very clearly a great modern Margaux. It's a brilliant effort from Margaux and the team led by Managing Director Philippe Bascaules. 02/2023 A stunning, riveting wine, the 2020 Margaux is classic as classic gets. Racy, elegant and super-refined, the 2020 possesses magnificent balance. Inky red/purplish fruit, lavender, rose petal, spice and bright mineral notes build as this super-expressive Margaux builds over time in the glass. The 2020 is not an obvious wine, but then again Château Margaux rarely is. I love the energy and vibrancy here. Margaux is very clearly one of the wines of the vintage in 2020. It’s a tremendous effort from the team led by Estate Manager Philippe Bascaules.

The 2020 Château Margaux was one of the highlights of the barrel samples originally sent to my home during the lockdown, a wine that I afforded 24 hours to open. Visiting the château to taste the wine in bottle, alas, I cannot loiter around an entire day! But it has a compelling bouquet with blackberry, crushed stone, pressed violet and a light petrichor scent - perhaps stricter than I recall from barrel. The palate has wonderful balanced, filigree tannins, creamy in texture with enormous depth and gentle grip. There is mesmerizing symmetry in this First Growth with a precise and very sustained slightly peppery finish. It's a Château Margaux from the top drawer. 02/2023 Much like the Deuxième Vin, the 2020 Château Margaux has a discreet nose; it is not interested in fireworks or in dazzling the taster. At first unassuming, it unfolds with black cherries, blueberry and signature crushed violet aromas, all delivered with the delineation and purity expected from an estate of this standing. Looking deeper, one finds touches of potpourri and India ink. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins and crisp acidity, perhaps more noticeable on the 2020 compared to the previous two vintages. This Margaux is surfeit with tension and coiled-up, nascent energy, then it tightens up toward a linear finish that strangely recalls a Pauillac, thanks to a subtle graphite note that lingers on the saline aftertaste. This is a classically styled Château Margaux that will gain weight and depth during its élevage. Cerebral and sophisticated, and one of the wines of the Left Bank in 2020.

The 2020 Château Margaux is composed of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, accounting for 36% of the harvest. The alcohol weighs in at 13.5%, the IPT is 80 and the pH is 3.67. Displaying an opaque purple-black color, it needs a lot of air, time and patience to coax out the youthfully reticent nose of blueberry preserves, blackcurrant pastilles and Black Forest cake, followed by suggestions of lavender, clove oil, iron ore and menthol with wafts of star anise and candied violets. The medium to full-bodied palate is wonderfully opulent, featuring tightly wound yet beautifully pure layers of black fruits and earthy nuances within a solid structure of firm yet velvety tannins and exhilarating freshness, finishing with very long-lingering earth and mineral notes. Another stunning expression of the vintage by Philippe Bascaules and his team—bravo! “What I like in 2020 is the intensity of the flavors, the wines are more floral. It is amazing to have a young wine so immediately complex,” said Chateau Margaux’s technical director, Philippe Bascaules. “We had 80 millimeters of rain on the 13th of August. This completely stopped the stress on the vines; it stopped the dehydration. In 2018, we had dehydration in September, even in 2019. This explains the higher levels of alcohol. We didn’t see this dehydration in 2020. But why do we have this high level of phenolics? Because the skins in 2020 were even richer than in 2018 and 2019—they were rich in phenolics. Even if we didn’t have the higher alcohol as a solvent, we had more tannins in the wines. They diffused very easily to the juice. It was a sign of very good ripeness. We picked 10th through 30th September. Fortunately, we had an early harvest—before it turned cold and wet.” No doubt thanks to the deep, free-draining gravels accounting for much of the vineyard area here and quickly dispensing with excess water during the August rains, the grand vin of Chateau Margaux is an absolute standout among my tastings of the wines of Médoc. It has grace with just enough generosity and sustained mid-palate intensity as well as a long finish. The quality of the tannins and the layers are phenomenal, but it is the freshness that is truly mind-blowing. Sensational performance in 2020!

Couleur sombre, pourpre et intense. Nez très aromatique, fin, fruité et complexe, avec son inimitable finesse de parfum. Velouté en entrée de bouche, velouté au milieu, avec un corps fondant et beaucoup de goût, le vin fond au palais, sèveux, savoureux et noble. Très bonne longueur. Toutefois, je l’ai perçu un peu moins magique que de coutume. Assemblage : 89 % cabernet sauvignon, 8 % merlot, 2 % petit verdot, 1 % cabernet franc. Degré d’alcool : 13°5 – pH : 3,68 – IPT : 80. Rendement : 36 hl/ha. Part de premier vin : 36 %.

So floral and perfumed with blackcurrants, blackberries and some asphalt. Full-bodied with super, fine tannins. Extremely refined with great length and intensity. The wonderful combination of refinement and power is already evident. Superb finish. Another great Margaux.