Chateau Pichon-Longueville Baron Pauillac 2010

About

Sitting imposingly opposite Pichon Comtesse de Lalande, Pichon-Baron is nothing if not a stunning château. Some 70 hectares, planted to 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc, with an average vine age of 30-35 years. The 40 distinct plots, all on the Pauillac/St.-Julien boundary, are now harvest and vinified separately, thanks to the impressive new cellar facilities.

The concept of lutte raisonée is practiced here, essentially a policy of minimal intervention, allowing nature to take its course, and they have achieved certification to ISO 1401. No sprays are utilised in the vineyard whatsoever, not even the ubiquitous (and permitted) Copper Sulphate. The initial triage or sorting is completed in the vineyard by the pickers.

From the 2012 vintage the name of Château Pichon Longueville Baron is formally changed to Château Pichon Baron. This has actually been what most people have called the chateau and the wine for a long time.

Chateau Pichon-Longueville Baron Pauillac 2010 is borderline perfection in a bottle, it boasts a saturated purple color as well as truly extraordinary aromatics of creme de cassis, licorice, crushed rock-like minerality, graphite, and spring flowers. Possessing full-bodied richness, a huge, unctuous mid-palate, and building tannin, it shows the purity, grandeur, and precision that makes this vintage so remarkable. Hide bottles for another 4-5 years, count yourself lucky, and enjoy bottles over the following 2-3 decades.