Wine Ratings

wines

(64% cabernet sauvignon, 26% merlot, 7% cabernet franc and 3% petit verdot; IPT 74; 13% alcohol): Dark ruby. Deep, brooding nose hints at dark plum, blackcurrant, coffee and lavender accented by cinnamon and nutmeg. Enters bright and fresh, then turns richer in the middle, with accessible plum, herb and coffee flavors persisting nicely on the peppery finish, which features chewy tannins. This is at once more herbal and more forward than the 1995. It’s also better than I remember it, and although still quite young it offers plenty of appeal. The wine’s harmonious acidity makes it seem lighter-bodied than it is. About 40% of the malolactic fermentation was carried out in barriques, compared to a normal one-third. Note that the label states 12.5% alcohol, but the data given to me by the estate shows 13% alcohol.Vinous Media | 91+ VMViolet, blackberry and flowers on the nose. Full-bodied, with ultrafine tannins and a medium finish. Ready.--’95/’96 Bordeaux retrospective. Drink now.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Delivers lots of blackberry, mineral and mint on the nose. Full-bodied, with plenty of fruit and racy, polished tannins on the finish. This can go on for many years. But why wait?—’89/’99 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2009). Drink now. 21,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

A very strong effort for Gruaud Larose, possibly eclipsed by what they have done in 2009, this is a pure, full-bodied Gruaud Larose with plenty of new saddle leather, cedar wood, black currants, cherries, licorice, and Provencal herbs. Spicy, earthy, full-bodied, and rich, it has hit its plateau of full maturity, where it should stay for another 20 or more years.Robert Parker | 94 RPNo written review provided. | 94 W&SThere’s nice richness here, with velvety-textured blackberry, fig and boysenberry confiture flavors rolling through, edged by a graphite note that slowly takes over on the finish. This has serious spine, with tar and ganache echoes hanging in the background, boding well for continued development.—Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Drink now through 2023. 18,750 cases made. Wine Spectator | 93 WSFully mature (yet I’d say in the early stages of its drink window), the 2000 Château Gruaud Larose offers a ripe, powerful, medium to full-bodied style as well as lots of currant and darker fruits followed by cedarwood, tobacco, iron, and assorted meaty, spicy nuances. It’s a rich, almost chunky effort with a great mid-palate, still present yet ripe tannins, and a great finish. It lacks some of the purity and precision of today’s wines yet is a satisfying, rich, impressively textured Saint-Julien to drink over the coming 15-20 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 92 JDThe 2000 Gruaud Larose is a vintage that I have not tasted for some 10 years. It has a somehow sedate bouquet of dark red berry fruit, cola and tobacco scents, ever so slightly smudged with age. The mellow, soy-tinged palate is medium-bodied with soft tannins and fine acidity but maybe just a little sauvage on the ferrous, slightly bretty finish. I feel this had more pep several years ago.Vinous Media | 91 VM

(Château Léoville Barton, St-Julien, Bordeaux, France, Red) 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot. A return to a more classic profile, with silky, dark damson and cassis, more structured tannins and great persistence. A lovely, extremely accomplished 2006, although it is still quite closed and backward right now. (Drink between 2017-2040)Decanter | 94 DECThere’s a great dark color to this, with intense aromas of cedar, wood, new leather and crushed blackberry. Full-bodied, with loads of fruit and a firm, powerful palate. Long and mouthpuckering. A muscular baby. Best after 2015. 18,750 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSRight at the top of its form, this 2006 is one of the finest wines to come out of the vintage. The wine is structured and dense, but with such heartwarming ripe fruit that the tannins are almost submerged. There is just a hint of wood, but juicy black currant continues right through to the end. In a year, the fruit will lessen, and long aging begin.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WETasted at Bordeaux Index’s annual 10-Year On tasting in London. The 2006 Château Léoville-Barton has a surprisingly rich and opulent bouquet at first, although it calms down with aeration, offering crushed violet and black cherry scents, reminiscent of a fine Margaux. The palate is medium-bodied with a gentle grip in the mouth. Here the class begins to appear with fine balance and poise, but like the Langoa, it lacquers the mouth with tannins and feels very backward, surprising given the vintage. Cellar this for another decade, folks. Tasted January 2016.Robert Parker | 92 RP-NMGood bright ruby-red. Pretty aromas of black cherry, cassis, tobacco leaf, minerals, licorice and violet. Chewy, rich and deep, with good dense mid-palate fruit and excellent concentration. Fuller and sweeter than the Langoa. Finishes long and delineated, with powerful tannic clout and terrific mineral thrust. A serious 2006 for the cellar.Vinous Media | 91+ VM

Ripe raspberries and blueberries with hints of fresh flowers. Deep nose of dark fruits. Full body, with silky tannins and a beautifully integrated tannin structure. It’s long and very refined. Better than 2009. Try in 2018.James Suckling | 96 JSRich and ripe black fruits, both concentrated and expressive, florality and fragrance are there waiting to come out. Firmness, breadth and precision, an excellent wine. Drinking Window 2016 - 2040.Decanter | 95 DECFor anybody looking for classic Bordeaux, this is the bottle to seek. “Classic” here means a wine with a tannic structure that also relies on a black currant flavor, with acidity providing freshness but not losing any concentration or aging potential. Keep for many years.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe 2010 Gruaud Larose has an attractive bouquet with brambly black fruit, freshly tilled loam and melted tar scents that gently unfold in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins and a superb line of acidity that keeps this Saint-Julien tensile from start to finish. Plenty of energy here and beautifully proportioned, this is excellent. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 94 VMDark garnet/plum/purple, with loads of spice, earth, underbrush, red and black currants, licorice, and even a hint of Provencal garrigue, this full-bodied, tannic, masculine style of St.-Julien needs 5-6 years of cellaring, but is full, beefy, rich and impressively endowed. There are plenty of firm tannins in the background of this blockbuster wine, which has been built for the long haul. This is one 2010 where patience will be required. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2040.Robert Parker | 93+ RPThis is distinctive, with an aromatic roasted alder wood streak leading the way, quickly followed by dense but sleek blackberry cobbler, currant paste and warm plum sauce notes. Well-polished through the finish, offering deeply embedded acidity. Best from 2015 through 2030.Wine Spectator | 93 WS(Château Gruaud Larose) The 2010 Gruaud Larose has turned out very well indeed and is another of the stars in St. Julien this year. The bouquet is deep, complex and handsomely reserved in tone, as it offers up scents of cassis, dark berries, espresso, cigar wrapper, gravelly soil tones and a deft framing of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and powerfully constructed, with a rock solid core of fruit, plenty of ripe, well-integrated tannins and a very long, well-balanced and classy finish. (Drink between 2022-2075).John Gilman | 92 JG

Firmly tannic in character, this wine is dry and extracted. There’s potential for this powerful, impressive wine to bear the wine’s very dry character with the weight of its fruit.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEDense ruby/purple, with cassis licorice and forest floors notes in the aromatics, Léoville-Barton’s 2012 is a relatively big, rich, masculine style of wine. This full-bodied wine needs 5-8 years of cellaring and should evolve easily for 25-30 years.Robert Parker | 92 RPDense black-red, firm, quite spicy Cabernet Sauvignon, both ripeness and firmness is there, elegance over power and a good future. Drinking Window 2017 - 2035.Decanter | 92 DECFloral and fruity red with hints of vanilla. Medium to full body, fine tannins and a crisp finish. Loosely knit. This needs three or four years to come together. Better after 2018.James Suckling | 91 JSThe 2012 Leoville-Barton is laced with dark red and blue-fleshed stone fruits, spices, sweet spice, mint and licorice. This is a decidedly understated, forward Leoville-Barton that will drink well with minimal cellaring. The classic Leoville-Barton signatures aren’t fully developed. Perhaps I caught the 2012 in an awkward stage, but today the wine is quite introspective and gives the impression of not being fully formed.Antonio Galloni | 91+ AG

This wine, with its massive tannins and rich fruit, is obviously set for a long life. It does have the contrast of fresh black-currant acidity to give it a lift. But with the power behind it, the wine will develop slowly. Drink from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEVery aromatic with cherries and blackberries. Hints of flowers. Full body, lightly chewy yet ultra-fine tannins and a fresh finish. Tangy and delicious. Racy. Better in 2021.James Suckling | 94 JSThe 2014 Leoville Barton is one of the must-buys of the vintage. Now in bottle, it has a very pure bouquet that gains intensity in the glass, laden with blackberry and raspberry coulis scents, cold wet stone, a wonderful mineralité that becomes more conspicuous with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with tensile tannin, a fine line of acidity that lends this precision and nervosité. There is class and sophistication in situ, not a powerful Léoville Barton, but beautifully poised. This is just a brilliant forerunner to the 2015 and it should represent great value.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 94 RP-NMThe 2014 Léoville Barton has a crisp, poised bouquet with graphite tinged black fruit, hints of crushed flower and clove, nicely define and gaining definition with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, beautifully judged acidity, sophisticated and poised, fanning out with confidence towards the fresh, energetic finish. This is a succinct and beautifully crafted Saint Julien with many years of drinking enjoyment to give. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.Vinous Media | 94 VMThis has a solid core of cassis, blueberry confiture and plum sauce flavors, wrapped with warm ganache and licorice snap notes, kept honest by graphite rivets along the finish. This has lots of muscle, but stays lean and long. Best from 2020 through 2035. 11,667 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSIntense nose of vanilla and blackcurrant; very elegant. Showing purity of fruit. The attack is strong, with firm tannins and impressive concentration without seeming too extracted. Spicy, complex and vibrant, this is balanced, with a long zesty finish. (Drink between 2020-2040)Decanter | 93 DECWhile a solid step back from the sensational 2015, the 2014 Léoville Barton is still a beauty. Possessing medium-bodied notes of cassis, sweet oak, spice and flowers, this impeccably balanced Saint-Julien is incredibly classy, layered and pure on the palate. While this cuvee can be backward and difficult to taste young, the 2014 has a supple, beautifully textured, fresh style that’s already approachable. Nevertheless, a few years in the cellar will do it well, and it should keep for two to three decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 93 JD

Aromas of strawberries and cherries follow through to a full body, silky tannins and a tangy finish. Fresh and clean. Linear and pretty. Purity of fruit is impressive. Drink in 2020.James Suckling | 94 JSThe 2014 Gruaud Larose marks the first step in the right direction, with much more freshness on the nose than previous vintages: blackberry, melted tar and cedar. There is simply a greater sense of purpose. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, crisp and sculpted, less rustic than before. I suspect this has much more longevity than the 2011 or 2012, with more grip and backbone evident on the finish. Very fine. Tasted at the Gruaud Larose vertical at the château in February 2023 and blind at the Southwold tasting in February 2024.Vinous Media | 93 VMThe wine is all about fruit and balanced tannins. It is juicy, so drinkable now, although with enough structure to promise good aging. Perfumed black-currant fruits show strongly. The wine shows how this chateau continues to perform reliably. Drink from 2020.Wine Enthusiast | 92 WEFragrant and floral fruit at the start, less weighty than in the past, with fine sweetness on the mid-palate. Much more complexity to come.Decanter | 91 DECThe 2014 Gruaud Larose has a light and airy bouquet at first, one that gathers depth with aeration. It is a little conservative at the moment, dusky black fruit mixed with sage and cedar. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy, slightly angular tannin. It is certainly fresh in the mouth, although it feels a tad pinched towards the finish; therefore, afford this 4-5 years in bottle to develop more substance and ambition.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90 RPShows a perfumy hint, with black tea and singed allspice notes out front, followed by a core of steeped plum and blackberry fruit. Light anise and apple wood details fill in on the finish. Supple yet well-packed. Best from 2020 through 2030. 12,833 cases made.Wine Spectator | 90 WSWhile I wasn’t able to taste the 2015, the 2014 Graud Larose is an attractive, classically styled Saint-Julien that has ripe currant fruits as well as lots of herbal/tobacco undertones, cedary spice, and earthy aromas and flavors. It’s medium-bodied, concentrated, and texture, with a chewy, rustic, endearing style. I like its balance and this old-school beauty will keep for at least 15-20 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 90 JDMedium to deep garnet in color, the 2014 Gruaud Larose features delicate notes of crushed rocks and forest floor over a core of blackcurrant preserves and Christmas cake with a touch of cigar box. The medium-bodied palate is elegantly styled with a lively backbone and fine-grained tannins, finishing on a lingering minerally note.The Wine Independent | 90 TWI

A legendary wine in the making from the Delon Family is the 2015 Leoville Las Cases and there are very few wines more impressive in the vintage. A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Merlot, this full-bodied, tight, super-concentrated, focused 2015 boasts an awesome bouquet of crème de cassis, graphite, charcoal, lead pencil, and minerality. Deep, layered, with perfect ripeness and building tannin, hide bottle for 6-7 years and enjoy this prodigious effort over the following 3-4 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThis wine that comes mainly from a magnificent walled vineyard within sight of the Gironde estuary is structured and dense. Its tannins and firm character show its enormous aging potential. Powerful black fruits come from the 85% Cabernet Sauvignon in this rich, juicy wine. Drink from 2027. Wine Enthusiast | 99 WEThe 2015 Léoville Las Cases is simply captivating. Sumptuous, racy and explosive in the glass, the 2015 is endowed with tremendous energy from start to finish. An exotic melange of crème de cassis, graphite, menthol and licorice bursts onto the palate as the 2015 shows off its alluring personality. Spectacularly rich, dense and full-throttle, with huge tannins that are nearly buried underneath the fruit, the 2015 is an unusual Las Cases. It is also breathtakingly beautiful. Readers who can find it should not miss it.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGBlackcurrant, blueberry and currant aromas with hints of black licorice and hot stones. Full-bodied with dense and integrated tannins and a long, long finish. It is all there and all about proportional harmony. Excellent focus and beauty. Drink in 2022.James Suckling | 98 JSFilled with blackberry, black currant, fig and boysenberry preserve flavors, this starts off showy, but a back end of brambly grip, warm tar, and pastis-soaked apple wood emerges slowly before taking an authoritative lead on the finish. All the while, a cool charcoal note weaves in and around everything. Best from 2025 through 2045. 16,667 cases made. — JMWine Spectator | 97 WSAt 94% (85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 9% Cabernet Franc) this is the highest-ever Cab content in this grand vin. Very dense at first but full of power and elegance, with lots of energy. Beautifully made, and seems more Pauillac than St-Julien. This will be a very great wine. Drinking Window 2025 - 2050.Decanter | 96 DECRicher and more demonstrative than the 2016, the 2015 Léoville Las Cases dodders up generous aromas of sweet berries, pencil shavings and loamy soil, framed by a deft application of creamy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, broad and expansive, with a fleshy core of fruit, succulent acids and a giving, gourmand profile, like many 2015s from the Northern Médoc, it’s already quite structurally open today, and it will likely attain its peak before both the 2014 and 2016 vintages that bookend it. For many consumers, that may be an advantage.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RP

Terrific intensity of dark berries, almost peppery blackcurrants and violets with attractive and integrated, spicy oak and an earthy edge. The palate has a super powerful and long, linear core with plenty of fruit flesh strapped in tight for a long and thrilling ride into the finish. A blend of 86 per cent cabernet and 14 per cent merlot. Try from 2024.James Suckling | 97 JSThis is so vivid as it brims with pastis-soaked plum, blackberry, black currant and blueberry paste flavors, all carried by a perfectly integrated brambly spine. Tar and ganache notes give the finish an extra kick while everything stays within the mouthwatering roasted apple wood frame. Both regal and rambunctious, this is St.-Julien to a T. Best from 2025 through 2040. 11,667 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSDeep purple-colored and a classic Saint-Julien with its pure crème de cassis, graphite, liquid rock, and essence of lead pencil shavings, the 2016 Château Léoville Barton is full-bodied, concentrated, and backward, with bright acidity and ripe yet certainly present and building tannins. This old-school, classic Léoville Barton has a fine thread of acidity keeping the wine focused and fresh. It’s a beauty, but mostly potential at this point, although it does have beautiful fruit. Savvy readers will hide bottles at the back of their cellar, and I wouldn’t start to think about opening bottles for a least a decade. It’s going to be incredibly long-lived. The blend of the 2016 is 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot, brought up in 60% new French oak.Jeb Dunnuck | 96+ JDThe 2016 Léoville-Barton is fabulous. A wine of breadth and power, the 2016 has so much to offer. The black cherry, chocolate, gravel, smoke and licorice flavors are all boldly sketched. A host of expressive savory and mineral notes develop into the substantial finish.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGThe Barton family’s flagship wine benefits hugely from the age of the vines. This wine is ripe and concentrated, rich in tannins but with the wonderful black fruits that can be conjured from this vineyard. It will age well and is likely to be ready to drink from 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEDeep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Leoville Barton delivers a superstar nose of crème de cassis, plum preserves and blueberry compote with suggestions of fragrant earth, unsmoked cigars, licorice and cedar chest. Medium to full-bodied, rich and seductive with firm yet velvety tannins, it has a decadently rich finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95+ RPIntense, luxurious, fresh yet also very classically Bordeaux on the nose. Loads of dark berry and currant fruit, allied to a touch of oaky spiciness. Density on the palate but also refined, elegant, and smooth. (Drink between 2021-2045)Decanter | 94 DEC

Based on 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc, the 2018 Château Gruaud Larose sports a dense purple hue as well as a stunning nose of pure crème de cassis, cedar pencil shavings, blackcurrants, smoked tobacco, and a liquid rock-like sense of minerality. This dense, almost broodingly backward, concentrated Saint-Julien has flawless balance, a remarkable sense of purity, masses of tannins, and one hell of a great finish. Seemingly almost from a more austere year (say 2000 or 2010), it’s not going to hit maturity for at least a decade and should cruise in cold cellars for 20-30 years. It’s a brilliant wine!Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDAromas of currants, blackberries, dried flowers, dark chocolate and tobacco leaves. Citrus zest, too. It’s full-bodied with firm, ultra fine tannins. Complex and layered with a juicy core of ripe fruit. Silky and delicious. Very creamy and fine-tannined. Better from 2025.James Suckling | 95 JSA densely textured and rich wine, this has power and concentration. Smoky tannins show strongly as well as juicy black-currant fruits that are still young. The wine, with its structure, is just starting on a journey to aging. Drink from 2027.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEThis has a bit of polish to its mix of cassis, crushed plum and blackberry fruit flavors before a wave of bittersweet cocoa, tobacco, and iron score the finish. But while muscular and grippy in the end, there’s ample freshness here throughout. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2023 through 2036. 12,133 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSHere the tannins are pretty hefty, matched by deep brambly black cherry notes. Good-quality with slate, cigar, chocolate, earth and black pepper spice through the mid-palate. Not as elegant at this stage as some St-Julien in the vintage but this has a long life ahead and is full of promise. Drinking Window 2026 - 2040.Decanter | 93 DECComposed of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot and 9% Cabernet Franc, the 2018 Gruaud Larose has a medium to deep garnet-purple color. It comes barreling out of the glass with powerful scents of blackberry preserves, baked plums and crème de cassis plus hints of fruitcake, Indian spices and tobacco leaf. The medium to full-bodied palate offers bags of baked berries flavors and a chewy texture with just enough freshness, finishing spicy. Judging by the slightly rustic tannins and suggestions of dried berry characters, I’m guessing the heat and drought had an impact this year. This said, the wine is very well crafted and delicious right now, although a good 3-4 years in bottle should soften the tannins and bring out further nuances.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RPI was delighted to taste the 2018 Gruaud Larose, as I missed it en primeur. Ripe and sweet on attack, Gruaud Larose is an especially dense, flamboyant Saint-Julien. Inky red fruit, mocha, wild flowers and spice abound. I find the new oak a bit overpowering, but the 2018 is an undeniably gorgeous and enticing wine.Antonio Galloni | 92 AG

Cassis, crushed plum and steeped blackberry fruit is all packed into this wine, along with tar, violet and roasted apple wood notes, plus a terrific tug of warm earth. Shows lots of energy in reserve, with a tightly knit finish pulling everything together. Cellaring required. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2026 through 2040. 11,600 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSThis estate has been on fire in recent vintages, and the 2018 Château Léoville Barton is up there with the best of them. Based on 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Merlot that was brought up in 60% new French oak, this classic, flawlessly balanced, straight-up awesome Saint-Julien has loads of cassis and mulberry fruits as well as notes of freshly sharpened pencils, leafy tobacco, chocolate, and earth. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and concentrated on the palate, it has building tannins and healthy acidity, yet the fruit is pure, perfectly ripe, and wonderfully integrated with all the wine’s components. As is normal with this cuvée, it closes down with extended air and is going to take a solid 8-10 years of bottle age to reach the early stages of maturity. It’s going to evolve for 30-40 years in cold cellars.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDSweet berries, blackberries, raspberries and violets follow through to a full body with extremely creamy, polished tannins that caress the palate. It’s really long and polished. Gorgeous finish. Drink after 2025.James Suckling | 97 JSIn this wine, fine and rich tannins partner with powerful black-plum and black-currant fruits. Densely textured while also having swathes of rich fruits, the wine shows both a firm side and one that offers total deliciousness. As it matures, both these aspects will come together. Drink from 2027.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEThe 2018 Léoville-Barton is a gorgeous, exotic wine. Crème de cassis, lavender, menthol, licorice and cloves race out of the glass. The 2018 marries the natural opulence of the year with a pretty classic sense of structure, making for one of the more compelling wines of the year. I would give this a good decade in the cellar. There is much to look forward to. I especially admire the energy and poise here.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGWell-polished blackcurrant, cassis and bilberry, everything pretty silky and firm. Not fully showing its generosity at this point but no question that it is going to get there soon. Clear charcoal, graphite and woodsmoke as it opens up. A ton of life ahead, and an appealing sense of mint freshness. Lives up to its en primeur promise - this is Léoville Barton at its most confident. Drinking Window 2026 - 2040Decanter | 96 DECDeep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 Léoville Barton needs a little swirling to coax out delicate notions of fresh blackberries, mulberries and cassis, plus touches of pencil shavings, clove oil, charcoal and black truffles. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers a great intensity of earth and mineral-laced black fruit flavors, supported by firm, ripe, grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing on a lingering ferrous note. Give it a good 4-5 years in bottle and drink it over the next 20 years+.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RP

97–99. Barrel Sample. A very fine, rich and structured wine, this has all the hallmarks of one of the stars of this vintage. Packed with rounded tannins and rich black fruits, the wine is impressively concentrated in layers of blackberry flavors and lifted acidity. Expect this wine to age for many years. Wine Enthusiast | 98 WELike its stablemate Langoa Barton, the 2019 Léoville Barton is a timeless classic, made for patient connoisseurs. Offering up aromas of blackcurrants, plums, pencil shavings and licorice, it’s full-bodied, deep and concentrated, its deep core of fruit framed by a chassis of rich, powdery tannin that makes itself felt on the youthfully firm finish. While it’s clearly built for the long haul, its structural seamlessness and mid-palate plenitude mark it out as one of the finest wines from this château in recent times. Could it be a more concentrated modern-day version of Anthony Barton’s brilliant 1985?Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPThe flagship 2019 Château Léoville Barton is brilliant, showing both the style of the estate as well as the vintage beautifully. It’s never the biggest or richest wine, yet it has a classic, vibrant, structured style that ages beautifully. Pure cassis, black currants, scorched earth, new leather, and graphite are just some of its nuances, and it’s medium to full-bodied, with a lively spine of acidity, beautiful overall balance, and a great finish. This textbook Léoville Barton demands a decade of bottle age and will keep for 30-40 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDThe 2019 Léoville Barton is so impressive. Rich and heady in the glass, the 2019 offers up a beguiling mix of dark fruit intermingled with scents to tobacco, gravel, pencil shavings, leather, licorice, scorched earth and cloves. Today, Léoville Barton is decidedly virile, imposing and in need of cellaring. It is also hugely impressive. Léoville Barton is one of the first Bordeaux I tasted, many years ago. It remains a favorite for its combination of quality, personality and fair price, all values the late Anthony Barton championed during his long and distinguished career. Antonio Galloni | 96 AGA strapping young wine, offering notes of blackberry paste, plum preserves and black currant coulis that show energy throughout, with plentiful bramble, tar and licorice root accents. There’s a mouthwatering echo of apple wood at the very end, with a flash of violet adding a hint of purity. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2025 through 2042. 11,850 cases made. Wine Spectator | 96 WSA dark nose here, savoury with animal tones, bramble fruits and leather nuances. The palate is excellent, grippy with tannins that just take hold and coat the mouth but underneath you feel there is such well defined fruit - a core of ripe blackcurrants and liquorice tinges. There is an elegance to this despite the mouthful of creamy tannins that are doing all the talking at the moment. This will be excellent in time. Sumptuous and utterly enchanting. (Drink between 2024-2045)Decanter | 96 DECCurrants, sweet fruit and fresh flowers on the nose. Medium-to full-bodied with firm, silky tannins that are chewy and powerful. Long and muscular, yet in a toned and polished way. Try after 2026.James Suckling | 96 JS

The flagship 2019 Château Léoville Poyferré is based on 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, and the balance Petit Verdot. It’s one of the bigger, richer wines in the vintage and has a gorgeous, thrilling, full-bodied style as well as notes of crème de cassis, tobacco leaf, violets, and chocolate. While many estates seem to be playing it safe and focusing on so-called elegance and balance, I love that Poyferré continues to make a ripe, sexy, beautifully textured wine that always offers more opulence and sexiness than most in the vintage. Ranking with the crème de la crème of the vintage, this gorgeous Poyferré can be enjoyed any time over the coming 40-50 years. Bravo!Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDSo aromatic with real complexity of notes on the nose, perfume and black fruits. Quite tannic on the palate, broad-shouldered with a core of liquorice-edged black fruit, dark chocolate and slate giving it quite a serious, gourmet and savoury feel right now. Lovely poise though, with mouthwatering freshness. Feels well made with energy and elegance. A standout wine with plenty on offer. Drinking Window: 2027 - 2045Decanter | 97 DECThe 2019 Léoville-Poyferré is creamy, racy and voluptuous to the core. Bright red cherry/plum fruit, blood orange, mint, spice and menthol fill out the layers with effortless grace. In some tastings, the 2019 has come across as quite powerful, while in other moments it shows greater finesse. Either way, the 2019 is positively stunning. I very much admire its energy and persistence. Tasted three times.Antonio Galloni | 97 AGThe 2019 Léoville Poyferré is showing very well in bottle, wafting from the glass with aromas of crème de cassis and wild berries mingled with notions of licorice, loamy soil, cigar wrapper and smoke. Full-bodied, velvety and polished, it’s broad and enveloping, with an ample core of fruit, ripe tannins and succulent acids, concluding with a long, precise finish. Invariably the most sumptuous of the three Léovilles, featuring some 35% Merlot, the 2019 is a terrific effort that will offer a wide drinking window.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThrows off gorgeous warmed plum, blueberry reduction and açaí berry compote aromas and flavors, laced with ganache and sweet tobacco from start to finish. Delivers ample structure in the guise of a cold cast iron note buried underneath the showy fruit, with a flash of violet for treble in the background. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2025 through 2040. 15,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSBlackcurrant, wet-earth with fresh black-mushroom aromas. Some chocolate, too. Full-bodied with layers of beautiful, ripe fruit and creamy tannins. It’s chewy and focused. Impressive balance. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 95 JS

The flagship from this great château, the 2020 Château Léoville Barton checks in as 85.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14.5% Merlot that saw 60% new French oak. It has fabulous aromatics of crème de cassis, graphite, liquid violets, spring flowers, and background oak. Full-bodied and concentrated on the palate, its purity of fruit is just about off the chart, it has a great mid-palate, and enough tannins to warrant 7-8 years of bottle age. This is another sensational wine from this team that will have 30-40 years of overall longevity.Jeb Dunnuck | 97+ JDA bold, strapping young wine, with vivid plum, cassis, kirsch and black licorice notes that meld steadily as they cruise through, carried by a bolt of graphite and finishing with a flourish of violet, anise and apple wood. Mouthwatering in the end. Built for the cellar. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2030 through 2045. 9,100 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe 2020 Léoville Barton is compelling. It offers up a gorgeous mix of vintage 2020 intensity married to the classicism Léoville-Barton have come to expect. Blackberry, graphite, dried herbs, menthol and dark spice abound. Whereas so many Saint-Juliens are exuberant in 2020, Léoville-Barton is very much buttoned up, showing just a twinkle of mischief that lets you know the best is yet to come.Vinous Media | 96 VMAromas of dark berries, ash, tar, blackcurrants and lead pencil, following through to a medium to full body, with firm and integrated tannins and a medium, chewy finish. Needs four to six years to soften and come together. Very tight and nicely structured. Try in 2027 and onwards.James Suckling | 96 JSDense and with velvety tannins, this wine has great structure and concentration without being too weighty. This solid wine is sure to age. Drink from 2027.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEA superb wine, the 2020 Léoville Barton exhibits generous aromas of blackberries and crème de cassis mingled with hints of licorice, pencil shavings and classy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, broad and fleshy, with a concentrated core of fruit, sweet tannins and a nicely defined finish, it bears some similarities with the estate’s demonstrative 2000 vintage, even if the two growing seasons were quite different. I suspect it will tighten up with more time in bottle, hence the plus sign next to my score, but right now, the 2020 is unusually accessible out of the gates.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95+ RPLiquorice on the nose with blue fruit aromas - cool and expressive. Quite tight on the palate, the tannins making the impact right now and the style still very much on the savoury edge. Good acidity here, but it’s coming off a little sharp, giving angles to the palate though given some cushioning by ripe tannins. I do love the red and black berry elements alongside pine notes, cedar, coffee, liquorice and tobacco, the wood flexing its muscles. Softly classic with nice St-Julien character.Decanter | 95 DEC

The Grand Vin 2020 Château Léoville Poyferré, which is released in a stylish black bottle commemorating a century for the Cuvelier family, is reminiscent of the 2016 with its powerful, concentrated, yet vibrant and inward style. Pure crème de cassis, melted chocolate, loamy earth, graphite, and some spicy nuances all define the aromatics, and it’s full-bodied, with a stacked mid-palate, nicely integrated oak, ripe tannins, and one hell of a great finish. This is another utterly brilliant wine from this team, which has been producing First Growth quality wines for many years now. The blend of the 2020 is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Petit Verdot, aged in 80% new barrels, hitting 13.58% natural alcohol and a pH of 3.81. It will benefit from just 5-7 years of bottle age and will evolve for 50 years or more if well stored. Bravo. Tasted multiple times with consistent results.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDThe 2020 Léoville-Poyferré is every bit as impressive as it was from barrel. If anything, it has gained in freshness and vibrancy with élevage. Dark cherry, plum, mocha, graphite and a kiss of French oak are some of the many notes that infuse the 2020 with tons of character. I especially admire its vertical energy and buttoned up personality. In some recent vintages Léoville-Poyferré has been quite showy, but the 2020 also has a more nuanced side that is hugely appealing.Vinous Media | 97 VMThis is really floral on the nose with violets and roses, and some black berries and dark cherries. It’s medium- to full-bodied with firm and polished tannins, and plenty of hazelnut and milk chocolate. Structured, yet so finely textured. So attractive and enticing now but needs three or four years to show what it has. Try after 2026.James Suckling | 96 JSSupple and generous with mouthwatering acidity, though really quite tannic at this point which does cover up some of the nuance. I like the texture, the frame and the weight, it’s clean, polished and well worked, not overdone at all, but this has a sense of potent seduction in the flavours, rich blackcurrant, perfumed and scented. Detailed with lots of stony, slate, and wet stone elements giving a wonderful terroir influence. It’s not as immediately charming as the 2019, the tension still prominent, but this will be brilliant in 5-10 years.Decanter | 96 DECShowy and very hard to resist, this gushes with velvety plum and boysenberry reduction flavors, along with melted black licorice and violet hints along the way. This has a very cold cast iron note buried deeply on the finish, too, to keep it grounded. A very distinctive house style. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2030 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 95 WSOf course, this impressive classified growth wine is young. But it’s easy to discern its promise. Black fruits and layers of sophisticated tannins are balanced with the wood aging and smoky fruit flavors. This estate in the heart of Saint-Julien has produced a very fine wine, fresh and structured at the same time. Drink from 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEA rich, powerful wine, the 2020 Léoville Poyferré offers up aromas of sweet berries, blueberry liqueur, exotic spices, incense and creamy new oak. Full-bodied, broad and layered, it’s deep and concentrated, its ample core of fruit only partially concealing a hefty payload of sweet, powdery, generously extracted tannin. Poyferré is generally the most flamboyant and demonstrative of the three Léovilles, but in 2020, it’s chunkier, broader shouldered and more brooding than usual.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RP