Lynch-Bages 2020: First Year in New Cellar

Clyde mentioned in his recent Bordeaux vintage report that he’d never seen more special labels than in 2020. To me, it makes sense—honestly, I’d slap a different label on a bottle of 2020 myself. Bordeaux survived unpredictable weather and a global pandemic to end up making a gorgeous set of wines. Many wineries also erected new state-of-the-art cellars during a lockdown. So, yes, there’s a little extra fanciness this year, and I’m on board for it.

Lynch-Bages is a winery that has both a new cellar and a (slightly) new label—the vintage date on their labels was handwritten by the cellar’s architect to celebrate 2020 as the first vintage that was made within its walls. On the last day of our trip to Bordeaux, while Clyde was nursing a sore leg, Trey and I met up with Jean-Charles Cazes, fourth generation of the Cazes family, to tour their new digs. The cellar is a contemporary, open space buttressed by glass and stainless steel, with a variety of vessels for fermentation and aging, all juxtaposed with the historic château and a cobblestoned town that borders the facility. Modern laboratories and relics from old barrel rooms; technology and tradition coexisting peacefully together—an encapsulation of modern Bordeaux.

The family has owned Lynch-Bages since the eve of the Second World War, and, under their guardianship, this Fifth Growth has become a household name, in many respects as famous as some of the First Growths. Their high quality and consistently delicious wines are to thank. But so is a meteoric rise to fame in China, where Lynch-Bages ranks with Lafite as some of the most revered and recognized labels. With a new cellar and a ton of momentum in the market, it feels like an exciting moment for this château.

It was also an exciting time to taste their wines. The family has several other projects around France, including Domaine des Sénéchaux in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Domaine L’Ostal in Minervois. I think that the craftsmanship in all of their wines is masterful, even at all different price points and in different terroir. In Bordeaux, they truly shine, and the 2020s were superbly concentrated and complex. Inky, dark-fruited, and rich. My notes below.

2020 Ormes de Pez, St-Estèphe $29.99

This is a great price for first-rate winemaking. There's a savory concentration and rich spice, coffee, and cocoa flavors with great depth of flavor on the palate. The fruit is fresh, the tannins are ripe and defined, the finish is long and lifted. Delish!

2020 Haut-Batailley, Pauillac $61.99

This is the fourth vintage of this wine made by the Cazes family of Lynch-Bages. They replanted the vineyard by selection massale when they purchased it. It's a big wine, that definitely needs time to integrate, but there's so much stuffing and complexity here: coffee, mocha, cedar, blackcurrants, and leather. Put this one in your cellar for a few years and it'll reward you in spades.

2020 Lynch-Bages, Pauillac $139.99

This is the first year that the wines were made in their brand-new, state-of-the-art winery. It's a wine for the long haul. Tannins need time but the palate is already explosively delicious, and the wine is long and supple. Black fruit, coffee, spice, and graphite. Concentrated and rich. A sumptuous wine, really excellent.

- Kate Soto, Blogger & Social Media Maven