Château Joanin Bécot 2020

Direct and a bit high-pitched, with damson plum and bitter cherry notes carried by a savory streak. A very fresh and unadorned wine. For fans of the understated style. Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2028.

Quite crisp, this has bite from the get go, a certain density in the mouth. The palate is clean and clear but the fruit is a little lost by nuances of cedar, cinnamon, liquorice and clove. It's lightly framed, the texture is mouthcoating and this has a supple sleekness — it hasn't been pushed too far but just doesn't quite have the full density and push of some others. Nice, cool minty touches give freshness.

90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc. 20 hl/ha (half the usual volume due to hail). No SO2 (at this stage). Cask sample. Pretty floral nose with violet notes. Hint of boiled sweets/hard candy as well. Lively and fruity, the tannins well honed. A touch of oak from the prise de bois but it should settle. (JL)

The 2020 Joanin-Becot is soft, silky and supple. Crushed red berry fruit and pretty floral notes are nicely lifted. Joanin-Becot is nicely done, but it is not as complete or engaging as it can be.

Flowers, truffle, sweet cherries and cocoa create the nose. Medium-bodied, silky, sensuous and fresh, packed with layers of ripe red fruits and a touch of cocoa on the back end of the finish, already expressing a beautiful sense of purity. This is in contention for one of the top vintages of Joanin Becot ever produced. Drink from 2023-2036.

I always love this cuvée, and the 2020 Château Joanin Bécot shows the class of the vintage with its limestone-driven aromatics of black raspberries, framboise, rose petals, iris, and exotic floral notes. With medium-bodied richness on the palate, it has silky tannins, a pure, elegant mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and a great finish. This is just pure, classic Right Bank goodness to enjoy over the coming decade or so.

90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc (less CF due to hail damage), gentle extraction, 14% alc. Deep purple with an opaque core and a delicate lilac rim. Complex bouquet of freshly picked wild berries, licorice, and a subtle violet scent, with blackcurrant drops and fine graphite notes in the background. Mid-palate shows a finely brittle texture, slightly sandy extract, supporting saline tension, and a slender body. Focused finish with dark-berry contours and dark minerality, ending with a gentle astringency.

91-92

Joanin’s 2020 shows character and freshness through peppery and chalky nuances. With aeration, floral notes come to the fore, with a touch of peony and, ultimately, red berries. The sense of freshness is clearly present. Lush, juicy and lively, it has a incisive structure. Tightly knit in style, the wine needs to relax and gain aromatic expression. Some time in the cellar will do the trick! As we say in more common parlance, “

The nose is fruity, fresh, elegant and offers a lovely concentration with finesse, depth, a pleasant subtle varietal/infused character (in the background) as well as a fine, elegant, powerful and racy grain. It reveals notes of fresh wild blackcurrant, pulpy boysenberry and, more subtly, cubeb pepper, combined with touches of fairly ripe raspberry, as well as hints of almost aromatic herbs and grey pepper. The palate is fruity and offers juiciness, minerality, tension, precision, balanced concentration, a fine grain and tensile precision. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of juicy/pulpy blackberry, violet and, more slightly, tangy/fleshy purple plum, combined with touches of nutmeg, fresh/bright red berries, fresh pepper, as well as fine hints of cardamom and almost aromatic herbs. Lovely supple, elegant tannins, very discreetly mellow. Beautiful freshness, precision, purity, gourmandise and depth. A discreet infused side on the palate.