2020 Léoville-Poyferré, St-Julien
98JD
97IWR
97JA
97VN
96CK
96DC
96JS
95WE
95WS
94RP
$124.99
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Culver City: 11
98
Jeb Dunnuck
Reviewed March 2023The Grand Vin 2020 Château Léoville Poyferré, which is released in a stylish black bottle commemorating a century for the Cuvelier family, is reminiscent of the 2016 with its powerful, concentrated, yet vibrant and inward style. Pure crème de cassis, melted chocolate, loamy earth, graphite, and some spicy nuances all define the aromatics, and it's full-bodied, with a stacked mid-palate, nicely integrated oak, ripe tannins, and one hell of a great finish. This is another utterly brilliant wine from this team, which has been producing First Growth quality wines for many years now. The blend of the 2020 is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Petit Verdot, aged in 80% new barrels, hitting 13.58% natural alcohol and a pH of 3.81. It will benefit from just 5-7 years of bottle age and will evolve for 50 years or more if well stored. Bravo. Tasted multiple times with consistent results. 98+
Professional Reviews
97
Int'l Wine Review
The 2020 Château Léoville Poyferré is a captivating and expressive wine that delivers both richness and refinement in equal measure. It opens with an inviting bouquet of dark cherry, ripe plum, and blackberry compote, layered seamlessly with nuances of toasted oak, warm spices, and crushed graphite. Beneath the fruit lies a distinct earthy undertone of loamy gravel, grounding the wine in its terroir and adding depth to the aromatic profile. On the palate, it is full-bodied, with fine-grained tannins and a well-structured frame that carries the dark fruit and mineral notes through a long, resonant finish. This is a beautifully balanced wine with complexity and aging potential, showcasing the elegance and power that Bordeaux does best. (JD)
97
Jane Anson
Excellent quality, head and shoulders above most of the vintage even in St Julien. Blackberry, black truffle, damson, liqourice, crayon and crushed rocks throughout. Great stuff. Harvest September 14 to 30, 35hl/h yield, 3.8ph. Consultant Michel Rolland, winemaker Isabelle Davin, 80% new oak. A special bottle as this vintage marks 100 years with the Cuvelier family.
97
Vinous
The 2020 Léoville-Poyferré is every bit as impressive as it was from barrel. If anything, it has gained in freshness and vibrancy with élevage. Dark cherry, plum, mocha, graphite and a kiss of French oak are some of the many notes that infuse the 2020 with tons of character. I especially admire its vertical energy and buttoned up personality. In some recent vintages Léoville-Poyferré has been quite showy, but the 2020 also has a more nuanced side that is hugely appealing. (AG)
Staff Reviews
RM
Review Date: 06/2025
While this vintage stylishly celebrates 100 years of the Cuvelier family at the helm, what they’ve accomplished over the past 20 years is a towering achievement in itself. Pick any vintage from that period, and you'll find an overachieving rendition of St-Julien—one that blends quintessential terroir with a consistently delicious and remarkably complex house style.
The 2020 highlights the more concentrated structure of the vintage, with deeply pitched fruit, fine and precise tannins, and a density that will undoubtedly unfold beautifully over time. There’s a lot going on here, and while its best years are still ahead, this wine clearly echoes some of their all-time greats—perhaps most notably the 2010.
Either way, this stunning and beautifully adorned bottle will be a standout in any collection and marks yet another triumph for Léoville-Poyferré and the Cuvelier family.
SL
Simon Li
Review Date: 05/2025Simon Li
As a devoted Bordeaux lover, I typically enjoy letting great vintages mature over time—but the 2020 Château Léoville Poyferré is a reminder that some wines can deliver immense pleasure even in their youth. This vintage is bold and expressive right out of the glass, with rich aromas of blackberry, black plum, and a touch of dark chocolate, wrapped in savory layers of tobacco leaf and cigar box. The wine is full-bodied, with excellent structure and a beautiful sense of balance—ripe fruit framed by polished tannins and just the right amount of acidity.
It’s generous and powerful, yet nothing feels overdone. There’s an earthy depth and a touch of spice that adds complexity as it opens up in the glass. While it’s drinking impressively well now with a bit of air, it clearly has the structure and concentration to evolve for another 10 to 15 years in the cellar. This is exactly the kind of wine that reminds me why I love the Left Bank—classic, confident, and full of character.
Notes
97 points Neal Martin for Vinous: "The 2020 Léoville Poyferré is quite backward on the nose, gradually unfurling with aeration to reveal introspective black fruit, licorice and touches of bay leaf. Returning after 20 minutes the aromatics develop life-affirming pixelation. The palate is medium-bodied with fine delineation—very pure and silky in terms of texture. This is lavished in some high-quality new oak, but there is plenty of fruit underneath. It will take several years to fully cohere, but it should be worth waiting for. This is stunning." (11/2024)
Details
| Type | Red Wine |
|---|---|
| Varietal | Cabernet Sauvignon and Blends |
| Origin | Saint Julien, Bordeaux, France |
| Bottle Size | 750 mL |
| SKU | 1749608 |
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