Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Reserve de la Comtesse 2016
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Suckling
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Robert
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The stunning, ripe dark berries and plums on the nose are attractively dressed and deliver a wealth of assertively rich and juicy dark-fruit flavors on the palate, in balanced and elegant yet powerful style. The best Réserve de la Comtesse for some time. Second wine of Château Pichon-Lalande. Try from 2023.
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Decanter
An incredibly luscious, gorgeously balanced and rich Réserve de la Comtesse. They picked right up until the light October rain, waiting until it had passed before continuing. Those extra few days have contributed to the particularly soft and silky quality of the tannins in the Cabernet Sauvignon, which have a gorgeous density to them. This is a serious wine that could stand up against many Médoc grand vins. The blend here is 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.
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Jeb Dunnuck
From a vintage compared to 1996 and 2009, both terrific yet different vintages, the 2016 Reserve de la Comtesse is a beauty with a classic Cabernet nose of blackcurrants, graphite, lead pencil, and flowers. It's medium-bodied, supple, incredibly elegant, and seamless on the palate, with loads of charm and character. It's another second wine that delivers the goods.
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Wine Spectator
A touch old-school, featuring savory, tobacco and rosemary accents amid a core of concentrated black cherry, red currant and plum paste flavors. Slightly austere, with chalky minerality harnessing the finish. A savory edge peeks in at the last second. For fans of the style. Best from 2022 through 2035.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Reserve de la Comtesse is a blend of 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, it leaps from the glass with beautiful kirsch, cassis and redcurrants with hints of red roses, black tea, black pepper, chocolate box and cloves. The palate is medium-bodied, very elegant and fresh with gorgeous silken tannins and loads of bright fruit, finishing spicy.
Other Vintages
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Wine
Just two families have been responsible for maintaining this wine's superb reputation for three centuries. Bordering on Chateau 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. The international reputation of this "Super Second" Growth can be attributed to unfailing quality and dynamic owners.
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.