Awesome. Smooth. Lots of graphite and terrior when it was first opened. Fruit gradually expressed itself as it aerated. Obviously lots of life left in it. Probably gets better. Great example.
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Very fragrant. Can smell from a couple feet away. Soft and feminine. Classic cab nose. Leather, beef jerky. Soy edamame with a little nori. Doesn’t show enough complexity on mid palate. A little thin. Finish does linger for 15 seconds. Oak well integrated, fruit in center stage. Gentle tannins. Creamy mouthfeel. Tasted in January of 2020. It had a cool stone minty personality I loved at that time. Not here now. 90 points because of cost
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Nose today is highly attractive and enticing with dark red fruit, menthol, hints of leather, smoke, and minerals. Far lighter in weight than the 2018 I tried next to it, but I get the sense this will drink fairly well young. Hope it will take on more weight with time but still pretty already.
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Red fruit, some attic dust and a touch of stable. On the palate, the fruits comes across as lighter than expected. This is elegant with soft round tannins. Very good.
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Epic Bordeaux for an Epic Birthday!; 9/1/2021-9/12/2021 (Paris & Bordeaux): Again the drying tannins although here they are more fine than in the 2016. A bit chalky in style. Dark red fruits that feel like they were picked maybe a few days before they hit ripeness. I suppose this was not the best year in Bordeaux but this was also the only wine among our group who did not get any takers for being best in the flight. 70% CS, 23% Merlot, 6% CF, 1% PV
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Purple froth on black core. Chocolate blackcurrant cherries blueberries cigar box lemon grass Pauillac pencil shavings. Evolving firmness of tannins with each mouthful. Good balance and length. Soft mouthfeel. It has an introspective masculine nature like its neighbour Latour. A brilliant wine. Riedel Bordeaux glasses. Best from opening. Drinking temperature 16 deg C. Estimated window of maturity 2032 to 2050.
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Day One In glass for three hours. Attractive nose of violet, pencil shaves and leather. Soft on palate with fine but abundant tannin. Cassis, wood and graphite on palate. Not fully opened indeed. Refined acidity in the very long finish. Lots of potential.
Day Two Kept the rest in bottle (only poured one glass on day one). Opulent nose of cassis, ginger and mineral. Much softer on palate than the day before. Minty and juicy. Closed.
Day Three After 68 hours from the first pour, with 2/3 still in the bottle, the wine finally re-opens and shows the class and complexity. Sea breeze, violet, leather. Dark chocolate, sour cherries. Silky and incredibly long finish. Balancing acidity and fine tannin. Classic.
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Decanted 2,5 hours. 375 cl bottle. Very young as expected. In this young stage I prefered the 2016 and 2014 over this. It seems that the 2017 Bordeaux is not much fun to drink so young (at least for my taste). It will be interestig to compare this vintages in 10 (+) years.
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Very complex and elegant nose of red berries, some balsamic notes, chocolate, coffee and very fine depth of aromas. Juicy with noticable tannins, and on the lighter side.
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Wonderfully deep, dense and majestic aromas with a really concentrated fruit core that creates joy with blackcurrants, blackberries, real campfire smoke, hints of pipe tobacco, leather, licorice and spices. Pretty full-bodied, fresh and really wonderful wine with a lovely dense mouthfeel of all the world's best fruits of blackberries, blackcurrants, blueberry peel, leather, licorice, tobacco, pencil tip and with wonderful spices on a long and complex output. Beautiful acid and tannin structure. This is truly a winning vintage. Fantastic!
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Double decanted 11am, enjoyed that night. Lovely blackcurrant nose, rich warm fruit, clean long finish, soft tannins, gorgeous and improved after an hour.
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Since last tasting the 2017 Pichon Comtesse a year and a half ago, this has come along well. With a composed cassis, plum, and hyacinth nose this comes across as pure and fresh. Delectable palate - complete. Long, mineral and lavender finish. 94-95
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2017 UGC Des Bordeaux, San Francisco, nose of black berry, black currants, spring flowers, allspice, and a hint of bell pepper, on the palate, big body, very tasty, great fruit that is brooding today and needs 4 years to peak, lovely, rich, mouth filling, tasted right after the Chateau Pichon Baron and is the typical opposite of that wine, remind me of the 2 wines in 1981, 1982, and 1983, long finish, blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot.
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Good intensity of ripe black cherry and other notes add complexity. More weighty and round than Pichon Baron tasted with it; smooth well integrated tannins. Maybe a tad short on acidity. LA UGC Tasting.
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UGC Bordeaux (Drake Hotel - Chicago IL): Walk around tasting. Also medium/good weight, with fairly firm structure that is more pronounced than I would prefer for the level of fruit. One of the better wines of the day, but I hope for more from Pichon Lalande. 90-91 point potential. Others liked this more.
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By far the best 2017 red wine at the UGC tasting in Washington, DC. A very good Paulliac with ripe fruit, density and power. One of the few red 2017s worth considering.
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Bordeaux 2017 En Primeur - In Bottle Tasting (Montreal): Aromas of mint and fresh herbs along with ripe fruit on the nose. The palate was lush and very structured with finely integrated tannins, good fresh fruit concentration and a straight finish.
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Tasted at Royal Ontario Museum at Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux tasting event 2017 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande was one of the superstars in the tasting. The youthful Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant blend was clear and medium ruby in colour. On the nose, there were ripe blackberries, blackcurrant and violets, followed by vanilla and coffee. The palate was rather full-bodied with medium-high level of acidity and high level of gripping tannin. The long finish was filled with the signature minerality and bramble fruit flavours. (93) I have mixed feeling about 2017 Pichon Lalande, because at the current pricing, consumers could buy maturing back vintages without the need to hold the stock in the cellar for a decade. Don't get me wrong. 2017 Pichon Lalande was an outstanding wine, but it could not reach the tightness, intensity and complexity of 2016, and the pricing was not attractive enough to justify a purchase over the back vintages.
Bordeaux 2017: A first look at the newly bottled 2017s Bordeaux. Twelve top 50 Chateaux, three top whites and one top sweet wine tasted (but hardly any superstar). All in all, the wines are good with a soft structure which might make them relatively early approachable. In terms of concentration and depth, however, they do not even remotely match the 2016s (or 2015s and 2018s for that matter). I had a tad higher hopes (for the reds and whites). Top reds: Pichon Lalande (94), Carmes, Poyferre, Canon and Valandraud (all 93) – all with 2 or 3 points upside once mature. As there are so many great recent vintages, there is no need to chase the 2017s reds, especially as they’re priced too high (compared to the other vintages). The sweet wines might be worth exploring further.
TN: The best red wine today and another winner from this winery. This follows a stunning 2014, an future superstar 2016. Dense, sharp and seductive, the signature weightless structure and an already fairly complex aroma profile with dark fruit, lots of minerality and fresh herbs. 94 points with upside to 96/97 points once mature.
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Arvi 2017 in the bottle tasting at the Dolder Grand in Zurich. Main conclusions: 1) Less concentration and complexity than 2015 and 2016; 2) generally soft tannins and light structures; 3) often well approachable already. Not a vintage to store for future generations, but one where you probably won't have to wait for a decade or more to pop a bottle and is likely to offer drinking pleasure early on. Of the 20 wines tasted, my top picks would be Smith-Haut-Lafitte, Clinet, Chevalier Blanc, Pichon Lalande (all 96) followed by Leoville Barton, de Fargues and Valandrau (all 95). See the tasting story for some number crunching.
Tasting note: Sweet, sexy nose with spices and mixed forest berry fruit, marginally herbal and some leather in the distance. Intense, dense palate with a strong structure. A high-flyer in this vintage.
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Barrel sample at BB&R 2017 en primeur tasting. Good nose, medium weight, well balanced, touch bitter liquorice finish not detracting, medium length. A good 17 that will drink relatively young and score could improve some.
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Tasted next to 2017 Pichon Baron. Very elegant and refined with polished tannins, well integrated acidity and generous dark fruit. Mineral, fresh, rather soft. Lingering and persistent finish. 93-94+
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Frankly, I was a bit apprehensive with the 2016 sitting in the next glass and having heard the cat-calls about the 2017 vintage. But for my palate, this is a winner. No, it doesn't have the size or voluptuousness of the 2016. But it does have pure, upright fruit and the loveliest saline/mineral spine. This should do very nicely, indeed. mid-90s is my bet.
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During a 2017 en Primeur walkabout tasting. This wine struck us as too light, lots of oak and bread on the nose, lacks a bit of Cabernet tannic punch. Not a great showing and I would wait until this is in bottle before pulling out my wallet.
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Showing a virtuous depth of color, the wine opens with notes of lead pencil, truffle, smoke, tobacco leaf, vanilla and dark red fruits. The tannins are silky, polished, salty and creamy. The wine is full bodied, velvety and long, delivering complexity, sweetness and length. This a very sensuous wine that comes from blending 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The wine reached 13.1% alcohol with a pH of 3.78. The harvest took place from September 7, ending October 1.
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2/23/2024 - Albennett Likes this wine: 93 Points
Awesome. Smooth. Lots of graphite and terrior when it was first opened. Fruit gradually expressed itself as it aerated. Obviously lots of life left in it. Probably gets better. Great example.
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5/13/2022 - Rbtrage wrote: 88 Points
Disappointed. Maybe too young.
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4/16/2022 - ptepper Likes this wine:
2017 comtesse de lalande
Very fragrant. Can smell from a couple feet away. Soft and feminine. Classic cab nose. Leather, beef jerky. Soy edamame with a little nori. Doesn’t show enough complexity on mid palate. A little thin. Finish does linger for 15 seconds. Oak well integrated, fruit in center stage. Gentle tannins. Creamy mouthfeel. Tasted in January of 2020. It had a cool stone minty personality I loved at that time. Not here now.
90 points because of cost
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3/31/2022 - mchern02 wrote: 93 Points
Nose today is highly attractive and enticing with dark red fruit, menthol, hints of leather, smoke, and minerals. Far lighter in weight than the 2018 I tried next to it, but I get the sense this will drink fairly well young. Hope it will take on more weight with time but still pretty already.
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3/16/2022 - Tudz Drkl Likes this wine:
Red fruit, some attic dust and a touch of stable. On the palate, the fruits comes across as lighter than expected. This is elegant with soft round tannins. Very good.
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9/8/2021 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Epic Bordeaux for an Epic Birthday!; 9/1/2021-9/12/2021 (Paris & Bordeaux): Again the drying tannins although here they are more fine than in the 2016. A bit chalky in style. Dark red fruits that feel like they were picked maybe a few days before they hit ripeness. I suppose this was not the best year in Bordeaux but this was also the only wine among our group who did not get any takers for being best in the flight. 70% CS, 23% Merlot, 6% CF, 1% PV
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9/3/2021 - Indran Rajendra Likes this wine: 99 Points
Purple froth on black core. Chocolate blackcurrant cherries blueberries cigar box lemon grass Pauillac pencil shavings. Evolving firmness of tannins with each mouthful. Good balance and length. Soft mouthfeel. It has an introspective masculine nature like its neighbour Latour. A brilliant wine. Riedel Bordeaux glasses. Best from opening. Drinking temperature 16 deg C. Estimated window of maturity 2032 to 2050.
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4/23/2021 - ETT95 wrote: 95 Points
Day One
In glass for three hours. Attractive nose of violet, pencil shaves and leather. Soft on palate with fine but abundant tannin. Cassis, wood and graphite on palate. Not fully opened indeed. Refined acidity in the very long finish. Lots of potential.
Day Two
Kept the rest in bottle (only poured one glass on day one). Opulent nose of cassis, ginger and mineral. Much softer on palate than the day before. Minty and juicy. Closed.
Day Three
After 68 hours from the first pour, with 2/3 still in the bottle, the wine finally re-opens and shows the class and complexity. Sea breeze, violet, leather. Dark chocolate, sour cherries. Silky and incredibly long finish. Balancing acidity and fine tannin. Classic.
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12/6/2020 - Romol Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted 2,5 hours. 375 cl bottle. Very young as expected. In this young stage I prefered the 2016 and 2014 over this. It seems that the 2017 Bordeaux is not much fun to drink so young (at least for my taste). It will be interestig to compare this vintages in 10 (+) years.
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11/26/2020 - Baltazar Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very complex and elegant nose of red berries, some balsamic notes, chocolate, coffee and very fine depth of aromas. Juicy with noticable tannins, and on the lighter side.
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11/20/2020 - Andre Brattland wrote: 96 Points
Wonderfully deep, dense and majestic aromas with a really concentrated fruit core that creates joy with blackcurrants, blackberries, real campfire smoke, hints of pipe tobacco, leather, licorice and spices. Pretty full-bodied, fresh and really wonderful wine with a lovely dense mouthfeel of all the world's best fruits of blackberries, blackcurrants, blueberry peel, leather, licorice, tobacco, pencil tip and with wonderful spices on a long and complex output. Beautiful acid and tannin structure. This is truly a winning vintage. Fantastic!
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11/19/2020 - jmoon Likes this wine: 94 Points
Double decanted 11am, enjoyed that night. Lovely blackcurrant nose, rich warm fruit, clean long finish, soft tannins, gorgeous and improved after an hour.
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10/11/2020 - Ianjaig Likes this wine: 94 Points
GG wine tasting. My number 1 rated wine of the tasting. Pure elegance.
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2/17/2020 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 92 Points
Amsterdam UGCB Tasting and Winemakers' Dinner (Beurs van Berlage / Eden Hotel): Trade tasting, brief note. Elegant and feminine, light extraction, slightly meaty, sweet fruit, attractive, gentle tannins, complete finish, good length. Good, but I was hoping for more.
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1/25/2020 - englishman's claret wrote: 94 Points
Since last tasting the 2017 Pichon Comtesse a year and a half ago, this has come along well. With a composed cassis, plum, and hyacinth nose this comes across as pure and fresh. Delectable palate - complete. Long, mineral and lavender finish. 94-95
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1/24/2020 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 94 Points
2017 UGC Des Bordeaux, San Francisco, nose of black berry, black currants, spring flowers, allspice, and a hint of bell pepper, on the palate, big body, very tasty, great fruit that is brooding today and needs 4 years to peak, lovely, rich, mouth filling, tasted right after the Chateau Pichon Baron and is the typical opposite of that wine, remind me of the 2 wines in 1981, 1982, and 1983, long finish, blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot.
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1/23/2020 - Roger Patterson wrote: 91 Points
Good intensity of ripe black cherry and other notes add complexity. More weighty and round than Pichon Baron tasted with it; smooth well integrated tannins. Maybe a tad short on acidity. LA UGC Tasting.
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1/22/2020 - Burgundy Al wrote:
UGC Bordeaux (Drake Hotel - Chicago IL): Walk around tasting. Also medium/good weight, with fairly firm structure that is more pronounced than I would prefer for the level of fruit. One of the better wines of the day, but I hope for more from Pichon Lalande. 90-91 point potential. Others liked this more.
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1/21/2020 - markricardo wrote: 94 Points
By far the best 2017 red wine at the UGC tasting in Washington, DC. A very good Paulliac with ripe fruit, density and power. One of the few red 2017s worth considering.
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1/18/2020 - Alexander Smith Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bordeaux 2017 En Primeur - In Bottle Tasting (Montreal): Aromas of mint and fresh herbs along with ripe fruit on the nose. The palate was lush and very structured with finely integrated tannins, good fresh fruit concentration and a straight finish.
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1/17/2020 - apple1813 Likes this wine:
Tasted at Royal Ontario Museum at Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux tasting event
2017 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande was one of the superstars in the tasting. The youthful Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant blend was clear and medium ruby in colour. On the nose, there were ripe blackberries, blackcurrant and violets, followed by vanilla and coffee. The palate was rather full-bodied with medium-high level of acidity and high level of gripping tannin. The long finish was filled with the signature minerality and bramble fruit flavours. (93)
I have mixed feeling about 2017 Pichon Lalande, because at the current pricing, consumers could buy maturing back vintages without the need to hold the stock in the cellar for a decade. Don't get me wrong. 2017 Pichon Lalande was an outstanding wine, but it could not reach the tightness, intensity and complexity of 2016, and the pricing was not attractive enough to justify a purchase over the back vintages.
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11/8/2019 - Cailles wrote: 94 Points
Bordeaux 2017: A first look at the newly bottled 2017s Bordeaux. Twelve top 50 Chateaux, three top whites and one top sweet wine tasted (but hardly any superstar). All in all, the wines are good with a soft structure which might make them relatively early approachable. In terms of concentration and depth, however, they do not even remotely match the 2016s (or 2015s and 2018s for that matter). I had a tad higher hopes (for the reds and whites). Top reds: Pichon Lalande (94), Carmes, Poyferre, Canon and Valandraud (all 93) – all with 2 or 3 points upside once mature. As there are so many great recent vintages, there is no need to chase the 2017s reds, especially as they’re priced too high (compared to the other vintages). The sweet wines might be worth exploring further.
TN: The best red wine today and another winner from this winery. This follows a stunning 2014, an future superstar 2016. Dense, sharp and seductive, the signature weightless structure and an already fairly complex aroma profile with dark fruit, lots of minerality and fresh herbs. 94 points with upside to 96/97 points once mature.
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11/4/2019 - sirpat00 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Arvi 2017 in the bottle tasting at the Dolder Grand in Zurich. Main conclusions: 1) Less concentration and complexity than 2015 and 2016; 2) generally soft tannins and light structures; 3) often well approachable already. Not a vintage to store for future generations, but one where you probably won't have to wait for a decade or more to pop a bottle and is likely to offer drinking pleasure early on. Of the 20 wines tasted, my top picks would be Smith-Haut-Lafitte, Clinet, Chevalier Blanc, Pichon Lalande (all 96) followed by Leoville Barton, de Fargues and Valandrau (all 95). See the tasting story for some number crunching.
Tasting note:
Sweet, sexy nose with spices and mixed forest berry fruit, marginally herbal and some leather in the distance. Intense, dense palate with a strong structure. A high-flyer in this vintage.
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7/14/2018 - wineforth Likes this wine: 92 Points
Barrel sample at BB&R 2017 en primeur tasting. Good nose, medium weight, well balanced, touch bitter liquorice finish not detracting, medium length. A good 17 that will drink relatively young and score could improve some.
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7/4/2018 - rossi.wine wrote: 94 Points
Tasted next to 2017 Pichon Baron. Very elegant and refined with polished tannins, well integrated acidity and generous dark fruit. Mineral, fresh, rather soft. Lingering and persistent finish. 93-94+
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6/23/2018 - englishman's claret wrote:
Frankly, I was a bit apprehensive with the 2016 sitting in the next glass and having heard the cat-calls about the 2017 vintage. But for my palate, this is a winner. No, it doesn't have the size or voluptuousness of the 2016. But it does have pure, upright fruit and the loveliest saline/mineral spine. This should do very nicely, indeed. mid-90s is my bet.
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6/10/2018 - Collector1855 wrote: 93 Points
During a 2017 en Primeur walkabout tasting. This wine struck us as too light, lots of oak and bread on the nose, lacks a bit of Cabernet tannic punch. Not a great showing and I would wait until this is in bottle before pulling out my wallet.
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4/26/2018 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Showing a virtuous depth of color, the wine opens with notes of lead pencil, truffle, smoke, tobacco leaf, vanilla and dark red fruits. The tannins are silky, polished, salty and creamy. The wine is full bodied, velvety and long, delivering complexity, sweetness and length. This a very sensuous wine that comes from blending 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The wine reached 13.1% alcohol with a pH of 3.78. The harvest took place from September 7, ending October 1.
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