Lot 397
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 1995 (1) WA 95
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 2000 (1) WA 96
Lot 397 Details
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 1995 (1)
Pauillac. 2ième Cru Classé
What sumptuous pleasures await those who purchase either the 1996 or 1995 Pichon-Lalande. It is hard to choose a favorite, although the 1995 is a smoother, more immediately sexy and accessible wine. It is an exquisite example of Pichon-Lalande with the Merlot component giving the wine a coffee/chocolatey/cherry component to go along with the Cabernet Sauvignon's and Cabernet Franc's complex blackberry/cassis fruit. The wine possesses an opaque black/ruby/purple color, and sexy, flamboyant aromatics of pain grille, black fruits, and cedar. Exquisite on the palate, this full-bodied, layered, multidimensional wine should prove to be one of the vintage's most extraordinary success stories. February 1998 WA 95
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 2000 (1)
Pauillac. 2ième Cru Classé
u. vts.
Sitting next to my former colleague, Pierre Antoine Rovani, at one of the tastings, he commented that he didn’t like the striking green note in the aromatics of this wine, which I didn’t detect at all, and a subsequent bottle at another tasting did not reveal it either. I do think there is a hint of bay leaf and a meatiness to it. In short, I find this to be a spectacular Pichon Lalande. Dense purple in color, with loads of coffee, mocha, creme de cassis, and chocolate notes, this is a somewhat unusual blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, and a whooping 10% Petit Verdot, with a little bit of Cabernet Franc. The Petit Verdot certainly gives the wine more of a tapenade, floral note, which I think can be interpreted by some as herbal. This is a rich, opulent, stunning Pichon Lalande that is beginning to drink beautifully, yet should continue to improve for at least another 10-15 years and last 30 or more years. June 2010 Drink: 2020-2050 WA 96