2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Georges de Latour
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Tasting notes
Vintage 2020 was 'one of the most challenging in history'. Heat and fires (although BV was not affected by the fires). 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot. The fruit comes from the estate's historic vineyards in western Rutherford Bench. A portion of the wine was fermented in new French oak barrels. The rest was fermented in stainless steel and concrete. Extended skin contact, then pressed and put to French barrel (95% new) for malo and 24 months' ageing. The oak imprint is deeper on this wine than the other BV wines tasted at the same time, despite heady perfume and luscious fruit. Baking spice and vanilla and toasty char over baked cherry, crème de cassis and hibiscus. The tannins hold the iridescent sheen of dark fruit back, bringing drama, pause, emphasis – like long, curlicue swirls of calligraphic ink punctuating the story of the vintage. Despite its potent concentration and oaky sweetness (it's never going to be anything other than quintessentially Napa Cab), the fruit has purity and energy and it's going to age and give pleasure for a long time to come. (TC)
Critic scores
Average Score
Tom Parker MW, jancisrobinson.com
Tamlyn Currin, jancisrobinson.com
More reviews and scores
The star of the show from this team in 2020 is the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Georges De Latour Private Reserve, a deep purple-hued Cabernet Sauvignon that spent 24 months in French oak (95% new). It has terrific aromatics of blackcurrants, smoked tobacco, graphite, and spice, and these carry over to the palate, where the wine is medium to full-bodied, has solid tannins, good mid-palate depth, and outstanding length. There are some firmer, chalky tannins here, but this is beautifully done and should have two decades of longevity.
The 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Georges de Latour is a pretty wild, exotic wine with loads of super-ripe dark cherry, plum, new leather, licorice, chocolate and sweet spice. This is an especially forward, ripe vintage for the Georges de Latour. I don't see the complexity or nuance of the very best years, but that was simply not possible in 2020. Winemaker Trevor Durling opted for a reduction of fermentation in barrel and an increase of Petit Verdot in the blend. The lighter structure of the year is impossible to miss. All things considered, though, the 2020 is another fine 2020 from BV.
While some wineries opted to skip the 2020 vintage, BV has bottled a seemingly excellent 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve Georges de Latour. It features black cherries, cassis and toasty oak on the nose, while its medium to full-bodied palate is a bit coarse and open-knit, but it shows no overt evidence of smoke taint to this taster, as the wine finishes long and velvety.
About the producer
Beaulieu Vineyard remains one of the most historically important wineries in Napa Valley. It is it one of the longest continuous running wineries in the region, as one of the few that kept operating throughout Prohibition.