2003 Pauillac, Château Pichon Longueville, Comtesse de Lalande
About Producer
Created in the late 17th century, the Pichon greater estate was divided in 1850 between the children of Joseph Pichon de Longueville. While Joseph’s sons received what has become Pichon Baron, his daughters inherited what is now known as Pichon Comtesse, with Virginie, Comtesse de Lalande, in charge. Édouard Miailhe bought the property in 1926 and passed it on to his daughter May-Eliane de Lencquesaing in 1978. The Pichon Comtesse we know today owes much to May-Eliane’s formidable dedication, energy and marketing skills. Outstanding wines were made here in the 1980s, but the 1990s were patchy. In 2007, the estate was sold to the Rouzaud family from Champagne Roederer, and thanks to a string of exceptional vintages in recent years, Pichon Comtesse has resumed its standing among the Médoc elite.
Varietals
Blend of 65% cabernet sauvignon, 31% merlot and 4% petit verdot.
About Appellation
Largest town in the Médoc and slighly more elevated than its surrounding area, Pauillac has always played an important role in the wine trade, notably when the city of Bordeaux lost its privilege and monopoly of wine exports to England in the 18th century. The vineyards cover 1,213ha and sit on well-drained sand and gravelly soils, with the best sites being located on rolling mounds, called 'croupes', that reach their highest point at 30m above sea level. Cabernet sauvignon is the predominant grape variety, albeit always blended with merlot, and to a lesser extent, with cabernet franc and petit verdot. Pauillac is home to 18 grands crus classés in the 1855 Bordeaux Classification, including Lafite-Rothschild, Latour and Mouton-Rothschild (since 1973) as first growths.
Tasting Notes
Enticing nose of red and black berries, baking spices, tobacco leaf, leather and forest floor, succulent mouthfeel with dense texture, fine structure and excellent focus, oodles of flavours of raspberry, black cherry, fig, prune, ganache and truffle interlaced with savoury touches of liquorice and cinnamon, well-embedded acidity and resolved tannins carrying through a long, racy finish. In 2003, the best wines are to be found in northern Médoc and bearing witness to their ageing capacity, this is wonderfully voluptuous, and very much alive and kicking at 20 years old. Having come round with elegant poise and alluring complexity, it’s rich and opulent yet not remotely heavy or overripe. Showing more charm than weight, its remarkable balance and purity of fruit brilliantly attest that Pichon Comtesse had pulled off a very seductive wine in one of the hottest vintages on record. (08/2023)