Château de Fieuzal 2020

Pleasant aromatics of baking spices; juicy attack, lively development, tension, spice and length; a thoroughly successful, poppy, approachable wine that doesn’t need long ageing.

Attractive aromas of ripe dark berries, sweet spices, nut shell, fine herbs and graphite. Full and opulent palate with an array of plush, finely polished tannins that coat the mouth. Succulent dark-fruit character underneath. Fresh, long-lasting and flavorful, with a firm finish. Try after 2025.

Cask sample. Heady nose with a menthol-like aspect. Beautifully pure cherry fruit, with dusty tannins that coat the back of the palate. Long and very savoury on the finish. Classic and likely to be a good-value buy. (RH)

The 2020 Château de Fieuzal has an attractive, cedar-infused nose with touches of briar and black olive tapenade. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy, sharp tannins and a sweetness toward the finish that feels a bit cloying. Fine. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.

Lusciously textured with multiple layers of perfectly ripe black cherries and blackberries, complicated by nuances of smoked wood embers, blueberries, cocoa, espresso, and licorice, this fabulous, sensuous wine is long, rich, and deep, with staying power you can sense in the opulently textured mid-palate, and a long, fruit-packed finish. Drink from 2025–2045.

Dark ruby with purple reflections, a dark core, subtly lighter at the rim. Fine herbal savouriness, ripe plum, vanilla, a hint of liquorice. Juicy, and chocolaty underpinned by sweet cherry, ripe, supporting tannins. The wine is persistent, has length and definite ageing potential.

Sweet red fruit, some oak notes. A medium-bodied, supple and rounded style, attractive fruit, mild tannin, some butterscotch notes with a rounded and rather long finish.

From a château that deserves more recognition in the market, the 2020 Château De Fieuzal is a brilliant Pessac-Léognan based on 65% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Petit Verdot, raised in 60% new barrels. It has a gorgeously pure nose of cassis, ripe black cherries, violets, spice, and scorched earth. This carries to a medium- to full-bodied, seamless, layered wine with ripe tannins, plenty of mid-palate depth, and a great mix of richness and elegance. It deserves 4–5 years in the cellar and will drink incredibly well over the following two decades.

Kunz barrel sample 2021: lactic, delicate, sweet bouquet, blueberries, strawberries, mint, fresh herbs. Silky, fresh, fragrant palate with fine fruit, medium good tannins, airy aromatics, light structure, fresh finish.

Lactic, delicate, sweet bouquet, blueberries, strawberries, mint, fresh herbs. Silky, fresh, fragrant palate with delicate fruit, medium good tannins, fragrant aromatics, light structure, fresh finish. 17/20 2026 - 2038

Composed of 65% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Petit Verdot, the 2020 de Fieuzal Rouge is deep garnet-purple in color. It wafts out with fragrant scents of dried flowers and fallen leaves over a core of plum preserves and warm cassis plus a touch of Chinese five spice. The medium to full-bodied palate offers bright acidity and a firm, grainy texture to support the muscular fruit, finishing with great length and energy.

91–92

The nose surprises with its complexity and notes of camphor, sweet spices, dried fruit, and a subtle herbal touch. On the palate, it shows beautiful structure; the juice is vibrant, elegant and racy, with plenty of energy.

So many details, so much subtlety in the bouquet of Fieuzal 2020. This wine has gained astonishing definition over the past 3 years. The attack is juicy and mouthwatering. It announces a wine brimming with aromatic intensity, tension, and energy. Its tannins, tight yet elegant, create a remarkable symbiosis with the acidic structure. A sapid, precise, persistent wine that highlights how finesse can surpass power. Undeniably a hallmark of a great wine!

The nose is fruity, subtle, and delivers delicate power with a slightly captivating edge. It reveals notes of morello cherry, bright strawberry, and, more lightly, vibrant/juicy wild berries, combined with small touches of lily, cornflower, wild blueberry, licorice stick, as well as discreet hints of spices/pepper. The palate is fruity, discreetly tight, and offers a tangy backbone, minerality, a certain juiciness, good definition, a wrapping feel, a touch of refined richness/concentration, and energy. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of juicy/tangy raspberry, pulpy/juicy redcurrant, and, more lightly, cherry, combined with small touches of fresh/juicy blackcurrant, hints of floral/varietal tones, fine hints of tonka bean/cocoa, spices, and a discreet hint of toast (underscoring the fruit) and fresh hazelnut. The tannins are suave, racy, and elegant.

Ruby red, plenty of red-fruit aromatics, savoury redcurrant and raspberry; not as concentrated as some, this has sinew and juice. A little austere, but I like the floral aromatics as it opens. A fairly subdued Fieuzal, structured with excellent juicy tension but not generous at this point. Tasted twice. 14 months’ ageing.

The Quinn family has delivered a serious wine in 2020, currently abrupt on the finish due to its hefty structure, but it's packed with bristling fruit, plump and broad-shouldered, and will clearly age well. Floral aromatics on the close add a violet lift and an utterly charming expansion.

94–96. Barrel Sample. A powerful wine that is full of dark black fruits as well as hints of dark chocolate. The tannins and the clear black currant are two fine elements of a wine that will have density and richness as it develops.