Château Lynch-Bages Echo de Lynch Bages 2020

The first vintage made at the new facility, the 2020 Echo De Lynch-Bages checks in as 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot that was raised all in once-used barrels. It's a big, mouth-filling, serious second wine revealing classic Pauillac lead pencil and tobacco notes., plenty of ripe black fruits, velvety tannins, and a great finish. One of the more opulent, expansive wines in the vintage, it has loads to love as well as more than a hint of the style of the Grand Vin.

The 2020 Echo de Lynch-Bages has certainly tightened up since I tasted it from barrel, now more black fruit coming through, graphite and pressed flowers. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent tannins, slightly grainy in texture, quite saline towards the finish, sleek and poised. It will require just a couple of years in bottle.

This has a nice generous feel, with cassis and damson plum unfurling easily, backed by light floral and iron notes through the fresh finish. Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now through 2033.

The 2020 Echo de Lynch-Bages is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot, aging for around 12 months in one-year-old French oak barriques. It has an alcohol of 13.03%, a pH of 3.78 and an IPT (tannin index) of 80. Deep garnet-purple in color, it rolls out of the glass with expressive, upfront notes of baked black and red cherries, plum preserves and blackcurrant cordial, followed by hints of new leather, tobacco leaf and a medicinal waft. The medium-bodied palate is chock-full of savory flavors, with a chewy texture and just enough freshness, finishing a little rustic.