Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Red and black fruits, spicy wood, and savory, floral, tobacco-like nuances all emerge from the 2022 Château Lespault-Martillac, a pretty, medium-bodied Pessac that has sweet, integrated tannins, terrific overall balance, and a great finish. I love it today, yet it should have a solid 15+ years of prime drinking ahead of it. The 2022 is 65% Merlot and 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, all aged 18 months in 35% new French oak, with the balance in once-used barrels.
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James Suckling
Spice with some iodine in addition to burnt oranges and dark fruits such as plums. Medium-bodied, this has velvety and firm tannins that give length and intensity. Needs three or four years to soften and come together.
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Decanter
Cool and fresh, a lovely minty creamy blue fruit aspect to this, concentrated and deep, there's an element of power to this which is clear from the start but because of the coolness it stops it from becoming too much. I love the sheer confidence here, plus the sleek texture, precise and on point. Tannic still, and not so concentrated fruit, not exuberant, more light, but really enjoyable.
Barrel Sample: 93 -
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2022 Lespault-Martillac is showing very well today. Less oaky than during the en primeur tasting, it unfurls from the glass with aromas of cassis, mulberries, spices and mint. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and charming, it's textured with a fleshy core of fruit, powdery tannins and a long, penetrating, fresh finish. This is a blend of 65% Merlot and 35% Cabernet Sauvignon. Rating:-91+
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.
Recognized for its superior reds as well as whites, Pessac-Léognan on the Left Bank claims classified growths for both—making it quite unique in comparison to its neighboring Médoc properties.
Pessac’s Chateau Haut-Brion, the only first growth located outside of the Médoc, is said to have been the first to conceptualize fine red wine in Bordeaux back in the late 1600s. The estate, along with its high-esteemed neighbors, La Mission Haut-Brion, Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pique-Caillou and Chateau Pape-Clément are today all but enveloped by the city of Bordeaux. The rest of the vineyards of Pessac-Léognan are in clearings of heavily forested area or abutting dense suburbs.
Arid sand and gravel on top of clay and limestone make the area unique and conducive to growing Sémillon and Sauvignon blanc as well as the grapes in the usual Left Bank red recipe: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and miniscule percentages of Petit Verdot and Malbec.
The best reds will show great force and finesse with inky blue and black fruit, mushroom, forest, tobacco, iodine and a smooth and intriguing texture.
Its best whites show complexity, longevity and no lack of exotic twists on citrus, tropical and stone fruit with pronounced floral and spice characteristics.