CLOS FOURTET
2023 1er Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion
Starts right out of the gate with fragrant white flowers, lime zest freshness, scraping pumice stone limestone feel, strong Clos Fourtet character coming through, with cassis and black cherry fruits, a whirl of peony and iris flowers, inching forward step by step through the palate. Aged in 2% amphora, 45% new oak, with berries destemmed but uncrushed befpre fermenting. Stephane Derenoncourt consultant. Drinking range: 2030 - 2045 Rating: 95 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (May 2024)
75cl bottles (wood case of 6)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
The 2023 Clos Fourtet is pure class. Elegant and soaring, the 2023 offers up an exciting mélange of dark-toned fruit, leather, incense, dried herbs, pencil shavings and crushed rocks. Beams of supporting limestone-infused tannin and acid give Clos Fourtet is super-distinctive feel. The long, enduring finish is a thing of beauty. Clos Fourtet remains a benchmark example of wines from Saint-Émilion's famed limestone plateau. Tasted two times. Drinking range: 2030 - 2063 Rating: 94-96 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (May 2024)
Close to the traditional blend here, with 87% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 6% Cabernet Sauvignon. The yield was 46 hl/ha, the highest since 2016 here. The picking started on September 14th, finishing October 3rd, picking a few parcels before the rain, but most afterwards. Fermented with whole berries, with pigeage to obtain a soft extraction. A lightly desiccated fruit character on the nose, with perfumed red cherry and sweet raspberry, with threads of red pepper, mint and violets. A very tense, charming start to the palate, with a supple and sinewy upper layer of fruits, which reveals a core of firm tannins, tightly knit, giving the midpalate a rich and lightly drying, limestone grip. It finishes with an infusion of this same grippy but nicely integrated structure, which dominates the length. This is a firm and tense example of Clos Fourtet, carried along in part by its acidity, and it should develop well. Tasted twice. The alcohol is about 14%. Rating: 92-94 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2024)
The 2023 Clos Fourtet is especially suave and refined this year, wafting from the glass with deep aromas of red berries, licorice, violets and pencil shavings, framed by a nicely integrated patina of new oak. Medium to full-bodied, supple and layered, with a velvety attack that segues into a bright, precise mid-palate, it's pure and lively, concluding with a mineral finish. Rating: 94-96 William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (Apr 2024)
This is so full of energy. It’s full-bodied with electrified tannins and a long, long finish. So polish and focus here with exquisite balance and length. Rating: 97-98 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2024)
Clos Fourtet
Guarding the westerly approaches to St Emilion village was a fort that became a château – Campfourtet renaming itself Fourtet sometime in the 19th Century. The 19.2 hectares are split between two main blocks, 14 hectares immediately around the buildings, and a further 5 about 400 metres away. Often spoken of as among the better estates in St Emilion, it has only really lived up its potential greatness in recent years under the tenure of the Cuvelier family, who purchased Clos Fourtet in 2001. These Cuveliers are not related to the Léoville Poyferré Cuveliers, and came from outside the world of wine - Philippe was running the Guilbert / Niceday office supplies company. His son Mathieu helps to run the properties. The Cuveliers own Château Poujeaux, in Moulis-en-Médoc, and subsequently bought Clos Fourtet’s neighbour Château Grandes Murailles, although they have resisted the temptation to merge the two together. The vineyards are 85% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and only 5% Cabernet Franc, with an average age of 30 years. There is a tendency toward organic/biodynamic viticulture, although full conversion is still some way off.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those on the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do contact our private client team via email or on 020 7018 0187.
Ordering
Prices are all in bond by the case size stated.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment to buy wines on release, as long as the release price is within the upper and lower price bands set by you on the pre-order form. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability but providing this firm commitment to buy effectively gives you priority and is a good idea for the most desirable wines.
Wines listed on the website can be ordered in the usual way via the website wishlist order form. You can also send orders directly to our private client team via email. Please note that, for the most sought-after wines, priority will be given to those who ordered the same wines last year and to those that have pre-ordered.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of email confirmation. Pre-orders are not binding if the release price is above your upper price band.
Invoices are all raised at the in bond price (excluding any duty and VAT) which will become payable at the prevailing rates when the wines arrive in the UK, should you wish to take duty paid delivery.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or bank transfer. We regret we cannot accept credit cards for en primeur orders. We reserve the right to apply a dunning charge of 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (at LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £500. Orders below this total will be charged an administration and handling fee of £16.50+ VAT when invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery of 2023 Bordeaux bought en primeur is expected during 2026. Delivery dates may vary as wines are shipped from Bordeaux at different times.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes). Immediate payment of invoices is then required by cash, cheque, debit card or bank transfer. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option but please note that confirmed orders are still binding even if the final invoice has not yet been issued.
Please specify on your wishlist order form where you would like the wines shipped on arrival in the UK. If this is to a third-party bonded warehouse, please specify the relevant account details. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue a second invoice for duty and VAT at the prevailing rate when the wines are available for delivery.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the format you want. While most of our listings are for 75cl bottles, we can source wines in any format that is offered by the Château. Please note that format requests cannot be changed once wines have been invoiced. Additional charges for special formats do apply and are as follows:-
- +£18.00 per case of 12 half-bottles
- +£30.00 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£7.50 per case of 3 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£11.00 per case of 6 Magnums
- +£45.00 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£60.00 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.
Storage Options:
Wines bought en primeur won't arrive in the UK until 2026. If you do not wish to take home delivery at that point, you may wish to consider where you would like the wines shipped. Lea & Sandeman offers duty paid and in bond storage through a dedicated storage company called Elephant Storage. For more details on the terms and fees associated with storage please go to our Storage Homepage or contact our private client team for more information.