Lot 82
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 1994 (1)
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 1996 (1) WA 96
CHÂTEAU PICHON-LONGUEVILLE BARON 1996 (4) WA 94
Lot 82 Details
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 1994 (1)
Pauillac. 2ième Cru Classé
bin soiled scraped label
CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE 1996 (1)
Pauillac. 2ième Cru Classé
soiled label
The 1996 Pichon-Lalande has long been one of the high points of this Pauillac estate and now at 20 years of age it is firing on all cylinders. You cannot have any complaints against the nose: intense blackberry, cedar and graphite, all beautifully delineated, demand your attention. The palate offers exquisite balance, refined and yet intense, the Cabernet Sauvignon clearly in the driving seat but assisted by the Merlot that imparts the crucial fleshy texture on the finish. Red berry fruit, cigar box, mint, juniper berries ... this is a complex and riveting Pauillac wine that is going to cruise along its drinking plateau for many years. This is outstanding. Tasted July 2016. October 2016 Drink: 2016-2040 WA 96
CHÂTEAU PICHON-LONGUEVILLE BARON 1996 (4)
Pauillac. 2ième Cru Classé
u. 1 x ts. 1 x stained label. 1 x scuffed label.
The 1996 Pichon-Longueville Baron has a deep garnet core with some bricking on the rim. The nose is fragrant and generous with more red fruit than black, cedar and tobacco, fine definition, perhaps a little rustic in keeping with the winemaking at the time, but certainly giving lots of pleasure. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin -- a cohesive Pauillac with plenty of depth and fine balance. The acidity lends this plenty of freshness and it does not shortchange you with plenty of tarry, cedary fruit. You come away with the impression that this Pichon Baron is going to continue to improve although I would not burn anyone at the stake for opening it now. If you cannot afford the First Growth then this (and Pichon Lalande) would be where I would come. Tasted July 2016. Drink: 2016-2035 WA 94