Community Tasting Note

• Keith Levenberg Likes this wine: 99 points

  October 27, 2019 - Epic wine, and if you can manage to acquire enough to save some for your kids and grandkids (or great-grandkids, or your own cryogenically frozen head, this ain't cracking up anytime soon), they (or your defrosted future self) will thank you. Interestingly, for many years, the Comtesse was the more classically styled of the Pichons, but for at least the last couple vintages I've found the Baron markedly more old-school, at least if you are measuring that in terms of youthful austerity. This starts out very clenched with a serious bite (not just from tannin), but it isn't closed because it is expressive of a huge array of stuff on both nose and palate, from blackberry to cedar and sandalwood, gravel, and even a savory, succulent element reminiscent of crisp, browned chicken skin. All classic Pauillac, as the Comtesse was, but altogether more muscle-bound than the more loose-knit Comtesse and while both are in very dark tones fruitwise, here it comes across closer to the bleeding edge of ripeness with a nice snap and bite. And yet a couple hours later, it somehow turns cashmere-soft, so if the only thing holding it short of having it all was a shortage of first-growth refinement, somehow it manages to pull that out of its pocket too.

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6 Comments

• BradA commented:

  10/28/19, 8:06 PM - Ok, I’m placing an order. Just give me your top five from 2016 and simplify my day!

• Keith Levenberg commented:

  10/29/19, 8:58 AM - Still working through them... Pichons at the top so far, followed by Calon and dark horse Durfort-Vivens

• BradA commented:

  11/10/19, 6:43 PM - Any Graves wines that stand out?

• Keith Levenberg commented:

  11/10/19, 6:47 PM - Really liked DdC and have been meaning to stock up, pretty good value around $75 too. Have not yet had enough Graves yet to figure out whether I like '15 or '16 better though.

• BradA commented:

  3/6/20, 11:01 PM - Care to refresh your top five of 2015 and 2016 vintage?

• Keith Levenberg commented:

  3/7/20, 1:04 PM - 2016s:
  5. Lynch
  4. Comtesse
  3. Cos
  2. Las Cases
  1. Baron
  value play: Fonbadet, Grand Puy Lacoste
  
  2015s:
  5. tie / Beau-Sejour Becot, La Dominique, Vray Croix de Gay
  4. Brane-Cantenac
  3. Calon
  2. Haut-Bailly
  1. Comtesse
  value play: Berliquet

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