Château Pichon-Longueville Baron 2010

Located in Pauillac between top estates, Château Latour and Château Pichon Baron, Château Pichon-Lalande (shorthand for Château Pichon-Longueville, Comtesse de Lalande) is a highly-regarded 2nd growth estate that Antonio Galloni describes as the “single hottest château on Bordeaux’s Left Bank right now.” Ranked as a 2nd Growth in the 1855 classification, Pichon-Lalande is today revered as a "Super Second" — a distinction accorded to those outperforming their historical ranking. The caliber of Pichon-Lalande is such that it is often regarded as near-equal to First Growth quality, contending closely with other highly-regarded estates such as St. Julien’s Léoville-Las Cases and St. Estèphe’s Cos d’Estournel. Since 2010, it has earned four perfect 100-point scores from top wine critics, showcasing its continued standing as a paragon of Bordeaux.

Situated directly adjacent to 1st Growth titan Château Latour, Pichon-Lalande shares prime real estate along the Gironde estuary, where "the best vines can see the river," according to an old Bordelais adage. The 20th-century vineyard expansion nearly doubled holdings, which today amount to 247-acres of land, which is divided into six blocks and 65 individual parcels.

Unusual for Pauillac, the deep gravel soils are planted to a comparatively high proportion of Merlot, with plantings amounting to 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot. Average vine age is around 40 years of age with some reaching past 90. Organic and biodynamic measures were put into place starting in 2014 with a full biodynamic conversion of vineyards culminating in Demeter-certification in 2021.

"Rocking stuff that continues to show well, the 2010 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron bursts from the glass with ripe, darker currants, spice, leather, and cedar pencil notes. Full-bodied and layered on the palate, it’s incredibly concentrated and powerful, with beautiful overall balance. It's a complete, satisfying, textbook Pauillac that has so much to love. Count yourself lucky if you have bottles in the cellar. Give it a solid decant if drinking any time soon, and it will keep for another 30+ years. Drink 2025-2055." - 98 Points, Jeb Dunnuck

"A dense and layered wine with lots of ripe and sweet fruit. Loads of currants, plums and tar. This is concentrated and almost jammy with velvety tannins. Powerful. Chewy" - 95 Points, James Suckling

Producer: Château Pichon-Longueville Baron

Country: France

Region: Bordeaux

Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot

Appellation: Pauillac

Vintage: 2010

Size: 750ml