Château Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

The Pichon Longueville estate goes back to 1688-1689. In 1850, Virginie de Pichon Longueville, Countess de Lalande, and her two sisters inherited three-fifths of the vineyard from their father. This took on the name of Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. In 1978, May-Eliane de Lencquesaing, daughter of Edouard Miailhe, in turn inherited this beautiful property and devoted herself entirely to continuing the tradition of quality wine. Just two families have been responsible for maintaining this wine's superb reputation for three centuries. Bordering on Château Latour, Second Growth Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is located in the southern part of Pauillac, near Saint-Julien. The unusual choice of grape varieties (there is a much higher percentage of Merlot than average) is a partial explanation for this wine's outstanding personality, marked by elegance, balance and finesse. Traditional methods and modern technology combine to make the most of the estate's prestigious soil. This is one of the great châteaux of Bordeaux and is rightly one of the most sought after Second Growths, with a reputation for producing wines that are typically Pauillac. Now owned by the Champagne house Louis Roederer, the new, recently installed winery is quite magnificent.

A beautiful Château, a beautiful 2022! This is a powerful yet elegant and svelte wine, showing the real pedigree and class of this 2nd growth. On the nose the wine offers sweet, almost jammy characters, condensed black and red cherry fruits, cassis, plum and a touch of chocolate. The palate revels these and adds raspberry coulis, mulberry and even Chinese spices. The palate is exotic, concentrated and yet enlivening it all is a most wonderful acidity and freshness and a streak of graphite, giving the wine both tension and energy, especially as the oak swells up and adds vanilla and more weight to the long finish.

Château Pichon Baron is best paired with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised and grilled dishes.

A low 30hl/ha yield, the individual parcels are vinified separately. 12% press wine is included in the final blend. Aged in 60% new oak barrels for 18 months.