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| Community Tasting Notes (average 92.7 pts. and median of 93 pts. in 503 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by AudunG on 3/16/2024 & rated 93 points: Dark aromas for a St. Julien. Aromas of dark berries, farmyard, smoke and rusty iron, like in a Pessac. Dense and powerful on the palate, with pronounced tannins. (941 views) | | | Tasted by Ara Kafafian on 2/18/2024 & rated 94 points: Opaque ruby, animal, barnyard, sweet notes, undergrowth some menthol, mushrooms, spicey, basically everything we love about aged Bordeaux is in here. Silky tannins. This is ready to go, simply amazing. Will easily hold another decade. (1500 views) | | | Tasted by PoyferrAgent1998 on 2/10/2024 & rated 91 points: Compared to the 95, the acidity of the 96 stands out. Because of the acidity but the wine has a more lively, fresh and energetic character. The 96 is probably perfect for a pairing with a proper dish. (1518 views) | | | Tasted by Frankie63 on 2/4/2024 & rated 93 points: Château Léoville Poyferré - Saint-Julien 1996
Lots of dark fruit, cassis and blackcurrant. (lots of) Leather and Forrest floor. Still more than enough acidity and nice chewy tannins. Love the long aftertaste, it lingers for more than 30 seconds. At its peak with some more years to go. (1555 views) | | | Tasted by Decanting Queen on 1/27/2024 & rated 94 points: CdB BoG; 1/25/2024-1/27/2024 (Denver): Loving the 1996 vintage right now. No formal notes but drinking great, full of fruit, smooth but present tannins. Yum. (2141 views) | | | Tasted by Ian_Rhie on 12/24/2023 & rated 94 points: Perfect drinking window. Tannins are all softened, plum, jammy berries, leather, classic Bordeaux. (1591 views) | | | Tasted by VindependenceDay on 10/21/2023 & rated 91 points: Day 2 after Coravin. A dark burgundy color, almost no bricking. Nose is big, but of stewed prunes, green pepper, mint, cedar. In the mouth, high acidity, with hint of sourness. Not tannic. Long finish. I want to like this more but it has a sour tartness that is a little off-putting. Pairs well with a warm turkey and cheese hoagie. (1977 views) | | | Tasted by MRG73 on 9/28/2023 & rated 94 points: Classic aged Bordeaux, in a good way. After 2 hour decant the nose was lifted, on the palate the wine had a coolish entry with high notes and then a strong lasting slightly spicy finish. Agree with prior tasting notes below including green peppers and cedar etc. I would however describe the stewed fruits more as tamarillo flavour . I think this wine has a long life ahead but also at a very good drinking window. (2100 views) | | | Tasted by FabesMTL on 9/24/2023 & rated 93 points: Chateau Leoville Poyferre 1996
Color: ruby red, pristine. One would think this wine is 5 years old.
First nose: cedar or mint.
Then barnyard. Now green pepper 🫑 followed by a whiff of Montreal steak spice. Barnyard comes and goes, as does the cedar.
Pallet at the onset is lean and muscular but tannic and austere. Needs air.
Double decant. Cedar on the nose.
Nose is not primary, there are virtually no fruits here, but not tertiary either. Cedar, spice, green pepper, ground black pepper, graphite (led pencil HB #3 ).
Palate oscillates between tannic and smooth, eventually becomes softer as one would expect from a St-Ju. But lacking a bit of follow-through on the finish.
Pallet now showing stewed red fruits and berries as I close it up and leave 1/3 for tomorrow.
A good showing, needed more air or cellar time. 93. (2003 views) | | | Tasted by ONEFIVE on 9/10/2023: Nose of saddle leather, tobacco, dried earth, dried cherry, and wood.
Full body, med acid, med tannin.
This is signing. Much better bottle than last time. Texturally lovely and plenty of life left. Enjoy over the next 10 years max. (2140 views) | | | Tasted by luHar1423 on 7/28/2023 & rated 97 points: A very elegant and classical Poyferre, silky in texture, with powerful fruity notes on the palate (and nose), well-balanced acidity, and tannins - a very good Poyferre, which has not reached its end of life yet.
The finish is long and in my humble opinion, the drinking window is still open for another odd 5 years from today. (2190 views) | | | Tasted by TXRhoneRanger on 7/9/2023 & rated 93 points: Will the 96's ever shed their tannic structure of the vintage? Probably not. This bottle showed all sorts of savoury notes and a bruised fruit melange. Oak is very welcome & integrated nicely. Umami x amaro and very bordelaise. Quite tasty with grilled lamb chops. Fans of fruit, you will not enjoy this wine, IMHO. (1923 views) | | | Tasted by ankitmehra on 5/11/2023 & rated 96 points: We saved the best for last. We’ve been wanting to open this bottle for awhile now, but were saving it for a dinner like this. The 1996 Château Léoville Poyferré is an absolute gem of a wine. Had between our main courses and desserts, the wine opened up to a subtle earthy nose before the palette presented itself to be herbaceous and spice driven, with much of the red cherry fruit still intact. A finish that brought in tobacco and cassis made this wine feel silky to the point where you never wanted the feeling to stop lingering. The 2005 Château Léoville Poyferre was probably a top two 2005 we’ve had the chance to try, but this 1996 vintage from the producer might be one of the wines of the year thus far for us. Undeniably elegant, this wine was 96 points on the night. (2147 views) | | | Tasted by Drinkslogger on 3/31/2023 & rated 95 points: Nose:
Cedar, wet gravel, barnyard funk with an underlay of rich juicy berries fireworks, pepper, rosemary, vanilla
Everything else:
Silky and integrated, minerals, black cherry, plums, blackberry, blueberries, licorice, juicy but dry, long finish, spices.
Lively and still in its prime. Should drink well into 2030. This would pair perfectly with a delicate Japanese Wagyu A4. (A5 is just too much fat for me) (573 views) | | | Tasted by forceberry on 1/14/2023 & rated 95 points: Typically a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (2/3) and Merlot (1/3) with a little bit of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc in the mix. Aged for 18 months in French oak barriques (50-75% new). 13% alcohol. Tasted blind in a 1996-themed tasting.
Evolved yet still almost fully opaque blackish-red color with a developed dried-blood color rim. The nose feels brooding yet attractive with slightly sweet-toned aromas of chokeberries and black cherries, some tobacco, a little bit of old leather, light phenolic smoky nuances, a juicy hint of bilberry and a cedary touch of oak spice. The wine is firm, textural and quite open-knit on the palate with a medium body and complex, layered flavors of ripe blackcurrants and wizened dark berries, some crunchy notes of fresh dark plums and bog bilberries, a little bit of smoky phenolic character, light woody notes of pencil shavings, a hint of fresh blueberry and a faint barnyardy touch of brett. The overall feel is pretty structured and sinewy yet not aggressive, thanks to both the high acidity and the firm medium tannins that slowly pile up on the gums. The finish is long, firm and moderately yet not aggressively tannic with an intense aftertaste of ripe dark fruits and juicy bilberries, some wizened blackcurrant tones, a little bit of leathery funk, light notes of tobacco, a smoky hint of phenolic spice and a touch of cedar.
A beautifully harmonious, vibrant and quite intense Bordeaux that shows some age, but at the same time still retains a remarkable amount of structure and relatively youthful fruit, making it feel like it is just past its adolescence and slowly entering its middle age. There's also a teensy bit of brett that seems to come and go, but always stays nicely in the background, letting the classic Bordelais aromatics and flavors stay nicely on the fore. This wine is by all standards an excellent 1996 St. Julien that is drinking really well right now and doesn't really call for any additional aging, but I'd say the wine's plateau of maturity is quite long way off and this wine will not only keep but evolve and improve for years more. It is really built for the long haul. Very highly recommended. With my guess I went with Bordeaux immediately, but for the appellation I went for Graves instead of St. Julien. Oh well. (2819 views) | | | Tasted by signotim on 1/14/2023 & rated 94 points: K&L Saturday Bordeaux tasting. Just a small taste but this was beautifully balanced with pure dark fruit, graphite, and leather. Good structure and strong finish. Lots of class in this tasting and some of the younger wines will likely surpass it in time, but this was the wine of the tasting for me. 94-95 (3450 views) | | | Tasted by Elpaninaro on 12/17/2022: Tasted 5 hours after decanting. This was largely passed at the tasting table as it had a strong aroma of brett. That finally blew off at the end of the night to the happy surprise of the few of us who had remained behind to clean up.
deep red color starting to show maturity at the rim, full on bretty nose for over 4 hours that made it impossible to even want to taste the wine, and then- as sometimes happens- the funk vanished leaving a fine classic nose of cassis, cedar and bell pepper, a slight vegetal streak as well, on the palate cassis and cherry fruits- mature but remaining fresh, forest floor and pine needles, good length that is drying out slightly on the very tail end, robust and a bit rustic - and in a wonderful place, pair it with a hearty steak.
***, ready to drink with time in hand (3153 views) | | | Tasted by Hendmo on 12/9/2022 & rated 95 points: What always impresses me about a really top quality wine is the ability to wear it’s age effortlessly. This is silky, with lovely freshness, but also with the slightly baked fruits, umami, gentle tobacco and lovely floral notes of a mature Bordeaux. Graceful, beautifully balanced and ready to drink. Highly recommended. (3090 views) | | | Tasted by Philip67 on 11/30/2022 & rated 93 points: Very nice, quite soft fruit forward, blackberry and black currant. Noticeable oak, may blow off. Good freshness. Good integration. Long some complexity. Drink now and will last another 15 to 20 years. (2995 views) | | | Tasted by srwatters on 11/11/2022 & rated 95 points: This is a dry red wine. Medium ruby in color with obvious bricking at the rim. Medium + intensity nose with muted but still present dark fruit. Ample tertiary notes of leather, graphite, and slight bret. The body is medium - with subtle soft tannin and fading acidity. The wine is aged but balanced and lovely to drink. This is an outstanding fully matured left bank Bordeaux. (2979 views) | | | Tasted by rstark on 11/10/2022: Really nice round mouthfeel , resolved tannins and dark (but slightly muted) fruit. But man, you better be OK with brett to enjoy this wine. Updated Review 12/15/22: opened a 2nd bottle and there was no barnyard problem. Coffee, Leather and same mouthfeel. Very enjoyable bottle at peak drinking window. Seems like many Bordeaux from the 1990's have bottle variation regarding brett (Barton, Montrose ....) (2299 views) | | | Tasted by JCGuthrie on 11/7/2022: I gave this about 60 minutes of slow O. Deep earthy nose with black fruit and hints of mushroom; the palate shows nicely with savory dark berries. It becomes more angular and minerally with extended air, eventually bordering on austere, so I do question whether this is one for the (really) long haul. (1934 views) | | | Tasted by djhammond on 10/12/2022 & rated 93 points: A better showing this time out, it is fully mature and doesn't really need decanting now. It is a lovely mature Bordeaux with a deeply aromatic nose displaying characteristics of a wine a decade or more older. Everything is integrated and in excellent working order on the palate and finish, but I do find it lacks depth and complexity. (2603 views) | | | Tasted by ONEFIVE on 10/9/2022: Slightly rustic on the nose but there’s red fruit in the background. Spice, dried leaves, tobacco, raspberry, dried cherry, and cedar.
The fruit comes out on the palate. It’s medium body with medium acidity and moderate tannin. All in all, wel balanced and drinking quite well at the moment. It has time left, at least another 5-10 years. Don’t let the nose fool you, this is great. (2124 views) | | | Tasted by Javachip on 9/17/2022 flawed bottle: Very musty despite an hour in the decanter. Initially thought this was corked, but it improved a bit after another hour. Some nice fruit lurking underneath, but the mustiness never went completely away. (1778 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Neal Martin
Vinous, Cellar Journal: Bordeaux 1920-2015 (Dec 2019) (12/1/2019)
(Léoville Poyferré Léoville Poyferré Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jane Anson
Decanter, JA Château Léoville Poyferré vertical 2018 (6/13/2018)
(Château Léoville Poyferré, St-Julien, Bordeaux, France, Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Chris Kissack
Winedoctor, May 2014 (5/1/2014)
(Château Léoville-Poyferré St Julien Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By John Kapon
Vintage Tastings, Chicago Recap (11/2/2011)
(Leoville Poyferre) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (2/17/2011)
(Ch Léoville Poyferré St-Julien Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Julia Harding, MW
JancisRobinson.com (5/19/2009)
(Ch Léoville Poyferré St-Julien Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (9/8/2006)
(Ch Léoville Poyferré St-Julien Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Chris Kissack
Winedoctor, January 2003
(Chateau Léoville-Poyferré St Julien) Subscribe to see review text. | By Chris Kissack
Winedoctor, January 2003
(Château Léoville-Poyferré St Julien Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Chris Kissack
Winedoctor, February 2002
(Chateau Léoville-Poyferré St Julien) Subscribe to see review text. | By Chris Kissack
Winedoctor, April 2001
(Chateau Léoville-Poyferré St Julien) Subscribe to see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, May/June 1998, IWC Issue #78
(Chateau Leoville Poyferre Saint Julien) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous and Decanter and Winedoctor and Vintage Tastings and JancisRobinson.com. (manage subscription channels) |
| Château Léoville Poyferré Producer website - Read more about Chateau Leoville Poyferre
A visit to Leoville Poyferre -https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2019/08/chateau-leoville-poyferre.html
Source: VinConnect (VinConnect.com)
Léoville, dating back to 1638, was the largest vineyard in the Médoc region. Jean de Moytié, Counselor of the Bordeaux Parliament and nobleman, owned a beautiful gravel slope of vineyard near the Garonne River. At the time it was named after its owner, Mont-Moytié.
In 1740, Jean de Moytié’s great granddaughter married Alexander de Gascq, whose family owned what is now Château Palmer. With great ambition, Alexander began imposing his style by changing the name from Mont-Moytié to Léoville (Lionville). His aim was to make Léoville a model estate and the reference point for the best Médoc wine. He invested and innovated, planting smaller grape varieties, bordering the rows with pinewood, renovating the cellar and aging the free-run wine in barrels. After Alexander’s death and 35 years of expansion and planting, Léoville in Saint-Julien was the largest property in the Médoc, stretching over 300 acres.
One hundred years and numerous transactions later, Léoville Poyferré was born. Although the property was by then much smaller, its outstanding wines gained early recognition and the property was ranked 2nd Growth in the 1855 Classification. In 1920, Paul and Albert Cuvelier, at the time well-known Bordeaux wine brokers, decided to invest in Médoc vineyards and acquired Château Léoville Poyferré.
The Cuvelier Family had previously purchased Château Le Crock in 1903, at the time a classified First Cru Bourgeois Supérieur of Saint-Estèphe. Château Le Crock is surrounded by the Classified Growths Château Cos d’Estournel and Château Montrose, and has a magnificent park, vast meadows and an island. Later the family added Château Moulin Riche, a classified Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel, in 1932.
This portfolio of Bordeaux properties continues to be managed by the Cuvelier Family. Didier Cuvelier runs the Château Léoville Poyferré since 1979 and Olivier Cuvelier manages the wine merchant company H.Cuvelier & Fils since 1985. Château Léoville Poyferré, Château Moulin Riche and Château Le Crock all benefit from the same attention by the technical and winemaking team of Château Léoville Poyferré.
Only the best grapes make it into the Grand Vin Léoville Poyferré — fruit from the youngest vines becomes the Pavillon de Léoville Poyferré, while Château Moulin Riche is vinified out of a 20-hectare separate plot which is situated next to Château Talbot.
Since Didier Cuvelier took over the Chateau, the family has invested time and resources in qualitative measures to restructure and improve winemaking techniques and technology. Supported by consultant Michel Rolland since 1994, they have rediscovered the chateau’s admired classical style, characterized by rich tannins, finesse and unrivaled silky texture. The Léoville-Poyferré Grand vin is a wine that benefits immeasurably from ageing; it can be approached after 12 to 15 years, but it will age gracefully for 40 years, in some cases even longer.
With the epic 1982 vintage, Léoville-Poyferré recaptured the magic of the late 19th century, and its resurgence culminated with the 2009 vintage when it received the highly-coveted and rare 100-point score from Robert Parker.Red Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.France Vins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)
Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings
2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest"
2019 vintage reports
2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage."
2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.comBordeaux Bordeaux Wine Guide
Vins Bordeaux (Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux)
History of Bordeaux
History of 1855 Bordeaux Classification
"2009 is all about ripeness, with wines impressively packed with ripe fruit and high alcohol levels. They are showy, in-your-face, and full of pleasure. The 2010s have the fruit and alcohol levels of the 2009s, but with a compelling freshness on the finish that balances the fruit and provides a perfect sense of structure." - Ben Nelson
"2016 is a landmark vintage in certain spots of Bordeaux and it should be remembered as one of the most inspired campaigns of the last 40-50+ years." -Jon Rimmerman
"The quality of red Bordeaux in 2016 was universally lauded – although the response to the en primeur campaign was muted. Quantity was high too, with the equivalent of 770 million bottles of wine produced. An exceptionally dry summer with cool nights eventually, thanks to mid September rain, resulted in small, thick-skinned, ripe grapes, and the wines are marked by high tannin and acidity, with superb aromatic fragrance." - Jancis Robinson
"2017 was complicated, but there are some excellent wines. Expect plenty of freshness and drinkability from wines that will offer excellent value, and others that will rival 2016 in terms of ripeness and ageability. But they are likely to be the exception not the rule, making careful selection key." - Jane Anson
"In the past, a vintage such as 2022 may have been overripe, raisined and low in acidity but 2022 had a sneaky little reservoir in its back pocket - a near perfect marriage of cool/cold/rain the previous winter and the previous vintage that literally soaked the soils (a key to why 2022 is not 2003...or 1893)." - Jon RimmermanMédoc Vins du Médoc (Conseil des Vins du Médoc) - Read More about the Medoc
VdB
The eight precisely defined appellations of the whole of the Médoc (from Blanquefort Brook to the north of the Bordeaux built-up area, almost to the Pointe de Grave) may claim the Médoc appellation. But there is also a specific territory in the north of the peninsula which produces exclusively wines with this appellation. In the great majority, the Médocs come from the north of the peninsula. The great individuality of this region is that the number of vines has increased more recently here than elsewhere, apart from a few isolated spots where vines have grown for many years. Today, the size of the small estate has brought about the development of a powerful co-operative movement. Four co-operatives out of five belong to the group called Unimédoc which ensures aging, bottling and marketing a large proportion of their wines.St. Julien VdB
Read more detailed information on St. Julien and its wines The seventeenth century pioneers Traces are to be found of a Saint-Julien de Rintrac, perhaps Saint-Julien's earliest name, as from the thirteenth century. But we have to wait until the seventeenth century pioneers, urban and rural aristocrats, discover the exceptional merits of these terroirs.
Traces of this system still exist today in the structure of estates within the appellation: by the side of the two villages of Beychevelle and Saint-Julien, the large estates are heavily preponderant, representing more than four fifths of the total surface of vineyards.
The terrain is practically identical over all the commune. Only the proximity of the estuary, sometimes close, sometimes further away, can cause slight variations in climate. In fact, Saint-Julien-Beychevelle's layer of gravel takes the form of a huge rectangle over 3 miles long and 2 miles wide. And the alluvial deposits are particularly well fragmented into ridges of Garonne gravel of the early Quaternary. Accordingly, the vines are safeguarded from stagnant water.
The wines from the Saint-Julien appellation may be recognized by their unparalleled bouquet, particularly harmonious and mild. They have a fine deep colour and combine the finesse of their aromas and a solid constitution. They have body, are very rich in flavour and have a delicious and delicate bouquet.
Production conditions (Decree dated November 14, 1936)
In order to have the right to the Saint-Julien appellation of controlled origin, red wines must:
- come from the commune of Saint-Julien and from precisely defined parcels in the communes of Cussac, and Saint-Laurent, "excluding the parcels situated on recent alluvium and sand on impermeable subsoils",
- satisfy precise production conditions: grape-varieties (Cabernet-Sauvignon, Cabernet-Franc, Carmenère, Merlot Noir, Petit Verdot, Cot or Malbec), minimum of sugar (178 grammes - 6.27 oz. - per litre of must) degree (an acquired 10°5) base yield (45 hectolitres per hectare). |
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