2018 Château Léoville-Poyferré
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Tasting notes
The 2018 Léoville-Poyferré performs similarly to the bottle tasted a few weeks earlier in the UK for my in-bottle round-up, although here I sense more opulence on the nose, perhaps more florality. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent ripe tannins, broad and sensual, plummy with that beguiling symmetry on the finish. It needs several years in bottle but it will be well worth the wait. Tasted at the Léoville-Poyferré vertical at the château with Sara Lecompte Cuvelier.
Critic scores
James Suckling
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Tasted blind. A popular wine with the group! Very pleasingly rich but within a (very obvious) tannic framework. Very youthful. Yet very rich. This is glorious! Very, very long. (JR)
64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc. Very deep blackish purple. A real powerhouse on the nose. Lots to savour here and no obvious excesses. An attention-grabber with no shortage of tannin. Dry, but not drying finish. Good balance. (JR)
Concentrated but luscious, with character and depth to the fruit, a ton of liqourice, smoke, chocolate, blackberry. Grilled herbs, turmeric and black pepper spice provide a counterpoint to the sweet fruit. There is higher alcohol than in some vintages, and it leaves a trace, even if a faint one, but this is seriously good stuff. It needs time - for sure a good decade to really open. Harvest September 20 to October 12. 80% new oak. First vintage under Sara Lecompte-Cuvelier. Retasted at Leoville Poyferre vertical July 2021.
About the producer
Ch. Léoville-Poyferré is a Second Growth Saint-Julien property that was once part of the same estate as Ch. Léoville Barton and Ch. Léoville Las Cases. It has the most complex and varied soils of the three and produces the most voluptuous, seductive style of wine.