2020 Chateau Pape Clement Blanc Pessac-Leognan Bordeaux 750 ml

Red wine rules in Bordeaux. So for a dry white wine to collect the kind of accolades most often attributed to revered First Growth reds, it’s got to be a show-stopper. An all-time great. An absolute and undeniable world-class bottle. 

It’s got to be a wine like the 2020 Chateau Pape Clément Blanc. 

“This beauty stopped me in my tracks,” said Jeb Dunnuck in his 100-point review of the Pape Clément—one of just two 2020 white Bordeaux to earn a perfect score. “This truly sensational white is an incredible achievement,” Dunnuck went on, dubbing it “one of the wines of the vintage.” 

Not unlike the halls of the grand château that owner Bernard Magrez has filled with priceless antiques, the wines of Pape Clément are show-stopping evocations of the best of Bordeaux. Throughout the 155-acre estate, vines sink deep into the sandy, gravelly, limestone-clay soils and produce intensely flavored berries that the vineyard team expertly hand-sorts at harvest. Only 45 acres of the grounds are dedicated to the Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, and Sauvignon Gris that compose their stellar blanc. 

This is a stirring white wine. A regal barrel-fermented blend of 67% Sauvignon Blanc, 30% Sémillon, and 3% Sauvignon Gris, grown on separately managed micro-plots on Pape Clément’s famed clay-gravel terroir, it’s brilliant lemon in appearance, with pronounced aromas of fresh lychee, ripe papaya and guava, split rocks, toasted apricots, lemongrass, toasted bread, and orange zest. The lively and delicate palate is built on juicy acidity, delivering rich flavors of orange marmalade, crushed oyster shells, Key Lime pie, honeysuckle, and a lovely bouquet of tropical fruits.