Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Not far off the 2018, the 2019 Château Grand-Puy Lacoste is deeply hued, with a concentrated, yet weightless style. Offering notes of red and black currants, spicy, tobacco, and graphite, with some classic Pauillac lead pencil, this richly textured, balanced, full-bodied effort has fine tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish.
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Vinous
The 2019 Grand-Puy-Lacoste has a well-defined bouquet with cedar and graphite infused black fruit, hints of pencil shavings, controlled and refined. The palate is medium-bodied with filigree tannins, taut and fresh with a pixelated and mineral-driven finish, lingering long in the mouth. What a heavenly 2019 Pauillac. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.
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Decanter
Lovely depth of colour, a big difference between the 1st and 2nd wine in this vintage, this just screams Pauillac with its pencil lead, charcoal and cassis notes. Glass-staining colour, extremely silky, with liquorice and chocolate adding layers without taking away from the purity of expression. Fine tannic hold, tons of character and clear longevity - this is a brilliant wine, easily equal to the 2018 and approaching the 2016.
Barrel Sample:
Barrel Sample: -
James Suckling
This is a very polished young wine with lemon-rind, blackcurrant, cedar and lavender character. It’s full, yet so refined and sophisticated, with floral undertones to the pretty fruit. The tannins are intense and long. Give this at least five or six years to soften. Try after 2025.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Grand-Puy-Lacoste exhibits notions of minty cassis, plums, loamy soil, burning embers and cigar wrapper, followed by a medium to full-bodied, rich and velvety palate that’s deep and concentrated, its generous core of lively fruit concealing an elegantly muscular chassis of ripe, powdery tannin. Consisting of fully 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, this is another true classic from the Borie family. Best after 2027.
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Wine Spectator
Dark but vibrant and racy, with sleek black currant, blackberry and black cherry puree flavors coursing through, pierced by a graphite spine and backed by tobacco, singed alder and freshly plowed humus notes. The long finish has a smoldering hint without sacrificing the purity of the fruit. Rock-solid. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2024.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
The leader on the Left Bank in number of first growth classified producers within its boundaries, Pauillac has more than any of the other appellations, at three of the five. Chateau Lafite Rothschild and Mouton Rothschild border St. Estephe on its northern end and Chateau Latour is at Pauillac’s southern end, bordering St. Julien.
While the first growths are certainly some of the better producers of the Left Bank, today they often compete with some of the “lower ranked” producers (second, third, fourth, fifth growth) in quality and value. The Left Bank of Bordeaux subscribes to an arguably outdated method of classification that goes back to 1855. The finest chateaux in that year were judged on the basis of reputation and trading price; changes in rank since then have been miniscule at best. Today producers such as Chateau Pontet-Canet, Chateau Grand Puy-Lacoste, Chateau Lynch-Bages, among others (all fifth growth) offer some of the most outstanding wines in all of Bordeaux.
Defining characteristics of fine wines from Pauillac (i.e. Cabernet-based Bordeaux Blends) include inky and juicy blackcurrant, cedar or cigar box and plush or chalky tannins.
Layers of gravel in the Pauillac region are key to its wines’ character and quality. The layers offer excellent drainage in the relatively flat topography of the region allowing water to run off into “jalles” or streams, which subsequently flow off into the Gironde.