Duclot Collection Case 2018 - 9 Bottles in a Presentation Case
By Jeremy Howard, CEO & Co-Founder

Duclot Collection Case 2018 - 9 Bottles in a Presentation Case

Duclot Collection Case 2018 - 9 Single Bottles in a Presentation Case

  • Duclot Collection cases are increasingly hard to buy, especially for great vintages like 2018.
  • As a blue chip négociant, Duclot is a trusted provider of the best of Bordeaux in single bottles.
  • The Duclot Collection Case 2018 contains five 100 points Wine Advocate wines! (Pétrus, Ausone, Margaux, Haut-Brion and Lafite Rothschild).
  • This is our first recommendation of a mixed collection case, based on our experience of how popular these are in Asia (especially).
  • Duclot Collection Case 2018 is offered at a big discount to its ‘sum of parts’ valuation, and hence represents an excellent investment opportunity.
  • All the 2018 100 point wines are in this case (except the unreleased Château Latour). 

Duclot: A Historic Bordeaux Négociant

Duclot Collection cases are probably the best way to access single bottles of the very top Bordeaux wines. 

Duclot’s prestige as a historic Bordeaux négociant guarantees condition and provenance. 

Founded in 1886, Duclot has access to most of the best properties and, more importantly, to their cellars! 

This means they are able to compose their now-famous Collection Cases to include the most exclusive and in-demand First Growths and other prestige wines from the region. 

Bordeaux 2018: An “Extraordinary” Left Bank Vintage 

Bordeaux 2018 An Exceptional Vintage

According to Wine Advocate, Bordeaux 2018 is “Extraordinary” (Left Bank) and “Outstanding” (Right Bank). 

2018 was the first of a ‘Trilogy of Excellence’ which includes the vintages 2018, 2019 & 2020. 2018 is a widely collected vintage whose quality was catalysed by three glorious months of record-breaking sunshine from early July to September. 

2018 Bordeaux is characterised by “powerful, rich and opulent wines” (Gavin Quinney) and is “right up there alongside 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2016 for quality” (Quinney). 

Eric Boissenot, consultant oenologist to many of the leading châteaux in the Médoc, said that 2018 is like a blend of 2009 and 2016. Gavin Quinney summarises 2018 as an “exceptional vintage for Bordeaux”, and that is reflected in the number of 100 point scores awarded by Wine Advocate (all except the unreleased Château Latour are in the Duclot Collection Case!). 

From an investment perspective, we also like the “8” in the year of the vintage, which can only increase its long-term desirability in Asian markets. 

Duclot Collection Case 2018 - Huge Discount to Intrinsic Value

The Duclot Collection Case 2018 contains one bottle of nine of the very top wines of 2018 from across both banks of Bordeaux, giving a marvellous cross section of what Bordeaux has to offer in this fabulous vintage. 

These Duclot cases have become collectors’ items that are especially popular as gifts, legacies for children etc. The year 2018 will always be special to someone, for some reason, and to mark it with nine of the best wines from a vintage like 2018 will always be desirable. 

And of course, the wines in this case will drink for another 40-50 years. 

The Duclot Collection Case 2018 contains the following: 

Duclot 2018 Collection Case Scores

At only £8,000, the Duclot Collection Case 2018 is offered at a significant discount to the cost of purchasing the wines individually in single bottle format (over £9,000). 

The full case breakdown with scores and reviews is shown below: 

Château Pétrus 2018 (1x75cl) 

100 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 Petrus has retained its opaque purple-black color after bottling, foreshadowing the seemingly frozen-in-time glacial pace at which this wine is proceeding. It opens very reluctantly, requiring considerable air with vigorous swirling and doggedly demands a few hours before it offers glimpses at this slumbering giant of a wine. As it eventually unfurls, it slowly morphs into a powerful, fantastically pure nose of preserved plums, blackberry preserves and blueberry compote, followed by nuances of molten licorice, dark chocolate, black truffles, iron ore and, still later, floral notions of lilacs and rose oil come through. The full-bodied palate is taut, muscular and oh-so-tightly wound at this stage, revealing peeks at many, many layers of perfectly ripe black and blue fruits, exotic spices and earthy notions for which words simply fail. The texture is at once rock solid and fantastically plush, with impeccably knit freshness, finishing so long you really can't taste or think of anything else for the rest of the day. Here is a heart-stopping titan that puts paid to all those naysayers who contest that perfection in wine cannot exist. It will require a good 8-10 years to hit its stride, then it is very likely to outlive us all, but you will want to make certain you drink this one before you go. 

Château Ausone 2018 (1x75cl) 

100 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 Ausone is a blend of 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot. Deep garnet-purple in color, rather predictably, the nose is almost completely shut-down on first sniff, taking considerable aeration to begin to reveal its jaw-dropping perfume of ripe black cherries, wild blueberries and plum preserves, leading to suggestions of candied violets, molten chocolate, licorice and crushed rocks with subtle cedar and pencil lead hints. The medium to full-bodied palate (14.5% alcohol) is so tightly wound and nuanced at this stage, it requires a lot of focus unravel all that is going on here. In short: a lot. The ripe, rich, black and blue fruit layers eventually give way to the beautifully cerebral earthy/minerally subtext, carried by fantastically well-knit tension, delivering an incredibly long, foundation-shaking finish. If the earth doesn't move when you drink this, you're probably not doing it right. 

Château Cheval Blanc 2018 (1x75cl) 

98+ points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 Cheval Blanc is a blend of 54% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc and 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, with a 3.75 pH and 14.5% alcohol. Deep garnet-purple colored, it needs considerable swirling and air to releases fragrant notes of stewed plums, juicy black cherries and ripe blackberries with underlying suggestions of damp soil, black truffles, rose oil and cardamom with wafts of underbrush and iron ore. The medium to full-bodied palate is densely packed with rich black fruits and loads of earthy accents, framed by super firm, grainy tannins and seamless freshness to balance, finishing with amazing length and a beautiful array of floral and mineral sparks. Thirty-three plots contributed to this wine, out of the forty-three in production. Of the rest, five went into Petit Cheval and five into bulk. It will need a good 6-7 years at least to really start to strut its stuff and should cellar for a further 30 years or more. 

Château Margaux 2018 (1x75cl) 

100 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 Château Margaux is composed of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, representing 36% of the crop this year. The wine has a pH of 3.8 and 14% alcohol. Deep purple-black in color, it slowly unfurls to reveal tantalizing scents of crème de cassis, wild blueberries and Black Forest cake with hints of redcurrant jelly, rose oil, dark chocolate and cedar chest plus a touch of star anise. The medium to full-bodied palate bursts with opulent black fruit, fragrant earth and floral layers, supported by a rock-solid structure of exquisitely ripe, finely grained tannins and seamless backbone of freshness, finishing with fantastic length. This is classic Margaux at its most seductive, although it is, rather amazingly, approachable and absolutely delicious right now. But, to enjoy its full glory, you will want to cellar it for at least 6-8 years and then watch it metamorphize over the next 40+ years. 

Château Haut-Brion 2018 (1x75cl) 


100 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 Haut-Brion is composed of 49.4% Merlot, 38.7% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11.9% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple in color, the wine needs a lot of swirling before it begins to release a whole complex melody of notes, one at a time to begin: tilled earth, followed by pronounced licorice, then crushed rocks, then the preserved plums. Eventually, it all comes together into a fascinating crescendo of intense crème de cassis, rose oil, wild blueberries, and kirsch notes, giving way to quiet, persistent leitmotif scents of cinnamon stick, truffles and redcurrant jelly. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers all this and more, revealing tightly wound black fruit, red berry and exotic spice layers within a solid, wonderfully plush frame and seamless freshness, finishing with epic length and loads of earth and mineral sparks. This is a profound, highly intellectual, multilayered baby, which will require a good 7-8 years to begin to sing its incredible song, then should cellar a further 40 years at least. By way of reference, think 1989 with more restraint and even greater purity. 

Château Mouton Rothschild 2018 (1x75cl) 

99 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 Mouton Rothschild is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc—there is also a splash of all the Petit Verdot they had, but it doesn’t even register in the percentage. It has 13.8% alcohol, which is relatively modest for the vintage. Deep garnet-purple colored, it straight away pops with bright, vivacious notes of crushed blackcurrants, juicy blackberries, and redcurrant jelly with slowly emerging nuances of candied violets, stewed plums, licorice and black tea, plus a waft of dusty red soil. The medium-bodied palate is built like a brick house with super firm, super ripe, grainy tannins and bold freshness supporting the muscular black fruits, finishing long and savory with lingering mineral suggestions. This is so, so delicious and, due to the ripeness of tannins, approachable now. It will be difficult to keep your mitts off it for a good 5-7 years, when all those tightly tucked away nuances should begin to emerge. After that, it should improve over the course of 25 years or more and drink for 40+. 

Château Lafite Rothschild 2018 (1x75cl) 

100 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 Lafite Rothschild is blended of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8.5% Merlot and 0.5% Petit Verdot and has 13.3% alcohol. Deep purple-black in color, it needs a fair bit of swirling to unlock intoxicating scents of blackcurrant cordial, baked plums and black cherry compote with an undercurrent of dark chocolate, licorice, cast-iron pan, cedar chest and fertile loam, plus a waft of pencil lead. The delicately crafted, medium-bodied palate is dripping with class, featuring layers of mineral-laced black fruits and exquisitely ripe, singularly Lafite tannins, finishing with epic length and depth. This simply stunning, delicately crafted expression of 2018 with its singularly evocative imprint of Lafite will require a good 7-8 years in bottle, then should continue to inspire awe over the following 40+ years. 

Château La Mission Haut-Brion 2018 (1x75cl) 

99 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion is a blend of 53.5% Merlot, 42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3.6% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, it emerges from the glass with a first wave of stewed black and red plums, mulberries and black raspberries scents, followed by pronounced notions of warm cassis, clove oil, violets and chocolate box, with hints of cast-iron pan, pencil lead and forest floor coming through after a few minutes. The medium to full-bodied palate shimmers with energy, delivering layers of red and black fruits with earthy and mineral sparks and a texture so satiny you need to remember to look for it, finishing with amazing vibrancy. This is so wonderfully evocative and singular, and yet it feels like its holding something back. It makes for an impressive glass right now but give it a good 5 years in bottle to allow further nuances to emerge and expect it to seriously reward those who can wait a good 12-15 years, when it should really hit its stride. 

Château D'Yquem 2018 (1x75cl) 

98 points – Wine Advocate 

The 2018 d'Yquem is all lime cordial, grapefruit oil and mandarin peel to begin. With a little coaxing, the fireworks really begin, letting off a whole array of honeysuckle, candied ginger, dried pineapple, lemon pastilles, chalk dust and sea spray scents, followed by a savory undercurrent of shaved almonds, allspice and baking bread. The palate is an exercise in polish and poise, featuring the most gorgeously creamy texture and bright, sparkling freshness, framing all the densely laden tropical and citrus fruit layers, finishing with a powerful BANG of profound floral and spice perfume. It is wonderfully sweet, yes, but that—paradoxically for a "sweet wine"—is almost beside the point. 


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