95pts James Suckling

This is really serious. It’s full-bodied, tight and linear with fantastic length. Racy, so fine and intense. Very fine tannins. One of the best Croix Ducru.

Aromas of currants, orange peel and dried flowers. Minerals. Medium to full body, fine and lightly chewy tannins, and a long and linear finish. Hints of salt. Crushed stone. Flavorful and bright. A little closed. Needs time to open. 53% cabernet sauvignon, 44% merlot, and 3% petit verdot. Better after 2027.

95pts Jeb Dunnuck

The second wine of the estate is the 2020 La Croix Ducru-Beaucaillou, composed of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 44% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot brought up in 60% new French oak. It's a much more concentrated, structured wine offering classic cassis and blackberry fruits intermixed with notes of scorched earth, tobacco, graphite, and chocolate. Playing in the medium to full-bodied end of the spectrum, it has a great mid-palate as well as the vintage's rich, deep, powerful style. It's going to have some up-front appeal given its balance as well as the quality of the tannins, but this is a serious wine for reserving 2-4 years in the cellar, and it should easily have 15-20 years of prime drinking.

95pts Decanter

So much purity and definition, this is a beautiful wine with clarity of flavour. Touches of grilled almond and rosemary, mocha, smoke and coffee bean, there is so much freshness, with juice rushing in between the muscles and a mint leaf finish. 3.78pH, 60% new oak. Yields were 25-30hl/ha. In a year where second wines in the Médoc have sometimes suffered from over-concentration, La Croix de Beaucaillou is a standout success.

94pts Vinous

The 2020 La Croix Ducru-Beaucaillou, matured in 60% new oak for an expected 12 months, is pleasantly reduced on the nose, opening up in the glass with intense black fruit laced with black olive and subtle estuarine scents. The palate is medium-bodied with an appealing powdery texture. A structured Saint-Julien with tangible backbone and grip on the finish. Yet, there is exquisite balance and impressive salinity on the aftertaste. Excellent.

91pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Unwinding in the glass with aromas of dark berries, plums, violets and licorice, the 2020 La Croix de Beaucaillou is medium to full-bodied, supple and fleshy, with a pure core of perfumed fruit and a charming, precise profile.

Winemaker Notes

Dense violet colour with pronounced aromas of cassis and cherry with nuances of graphite, cocoa and spice. The palate is full-bodied with a firm core of fine-grained, polished tannins, enveloped with densely concentrated, and defined fruits giving a voluptuous, supple texture. Finely balanced, very persistent finish. Striking presence.

Blend: 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 44% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot