1998 Château Léoville Barton

Community Tasting Notes (303) Avg Score: 90.6 points

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  5/15/2024 - DanielAVTL Likes this wine: 93 Points

  * Wine 2/4 (BDX spring tasting dinner). Decanted 4 hours.
  
  Initially very tannic and locked up, so opted for a lengthy decant and by the time we sat down for dinner, the wine was already singing.
  
  On the nose, gorgeous notes of pine and forest floor, smoked meat, black currant and leather, with subtle hints of rosemary and anise in the background. Seductive and complex.
  
  On the palette, beautiful depth, layered dark fruit, pepper, spices and mocha, displaying robust secondary notes as well as some more subtle tertiary notes of sherry and toasted nuts. All this deliciousness supported by a round and opulent structure, medium to full bodied, and a 45+ second finish. Smooth, integrated, deep, complex and rich.
  
  A brilliant 93 points on the night, definitely at peak now, and will likely remain there for the next decade at least. Drink now through 2035.

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  5/12/2024 - Geoff Likes this wine: 94 Points

  My cellar since release, low to mid neck fill, pristine cork, five hour slo-ox, then decanted off sediment. Deep dark color with no evidence of browning. Beautiful nose of cedar, oak, red and dark fruit, tobacco, leather, spicebox. Sweet tannins mildly present. Medium to full bodied. Everything in balance with a long memorable finish. A very enjoyable wine, indeed! Matched well with baby back ribs.

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  2/20/2024 - Zweder Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Monthly Tuesday group "The Dead Sparrow": Pauillac and St. Julien (By me @ the factory): In the bouquet dark berries, minerals and beautifully dosed oak. On the palate an elegant wine with fresh acidity, dark and red berries, beautiful oak and cedar, good acidity and tannin with still enough power for some more years. Beautiful and classical wine.

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  10/14/2023 - Bellissimo wrote:

  Decanted 45 minutes at home, cleared sediment, brought to a restaurant where it was slow-O'd for another hour. Note going from memory.
  
  Not a lot of fruit more tertiary flavors at this point. Yes there were some black currants and plum but there was also fennel, mushroom, tobacco, and aged balsamic. Everything was nicely balanced and it held its flavor profile over 60-90 minutes after we got around to it. This exceeded my expectations. Birth year wine for eldest and so happy to share with everyone.
  
  NOTE: this was purchased in 2011 from a reputable retailer and stored properly since that time. Cork was unbelievably pristine. Really shocking for a 25 year old wine, looked like was laying on its side for a year.

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  9/30/2023 - TheForces wrote:

  Flawed bottle

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