Chateau Pichon Longueville Baron 2020 Demi 0,375 l

- 97 Punkte Robert Parkers WINE ADVOCATE, Lisa Perrotti-Brown: "The brilliant 2020 Pichon-Longueville Baron offers up inviting aromas of sweet berries and cassis mingled with pipe tobacco, loamy soil, pencil shavings and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, its velvety attack segues into a concentrated mid-palate that's framed by rich, powdery tannins, concluding with a long, vibrant finish. A blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon and 24% Merlot, it's a true classic that's a touch less demonstrative out of the gates than the sensual 2019, but which in the fullness of time will prove every bit as good.“

- 98 Punkte WINE ENTHUSIAST, Roger Voss: “Made with a high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine offers dark tannins that give density and massive black fruits. With a magnificent combination of dark fruits and rich structure, it is set for long-term aging. Drink from 2028.”

- 97 Punkte WINESPECTATOR, James Molesworth: „This has a very large-scaled yet properly proportioned core of cassis, plum and blackberry fruit flavors that are remarkably pure and focused. Buried deep within is a sleek, vibrant iron spine that drives the finish as the fruit keeps pace. Extra savory, tobacco and cedar nuances fill out all the remaining available space. A towering wine, with a buttoned-up feel. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2030 through 2045. 12,404 cases made.“

- 98 Punkte VINOUS, Antonio Galloni: "The 2020 Pichon Baron is every bit as magnificent as it was en primeur. A wine of vertical intensity and explosive power, the 2020 offers up an exotic mix of dark red/black fruit, espresso, licorice, menthol, gravel and dried herbs. This potent, driving Pauillac needs time to come together. It marries the fruit intensity of a warm year with the driving energy of a cool year. The 2020 is a gorgeous Pichon Baron.”

- 97 Punkte VINOUS, Neal Martin: "As I found before, the 2020 Picon Baron takes a while to open in the glass. Finally, it offers enticing blackberry and boysenberry fruit, peony and iris flower, hints of graphite and black truffle. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grain tannins, again, displaying outstanding symmetry and focus, fresh as a daisy with a strong and mineral-driven finish. Christian Seely and his team have overseen a splendid Pichon Baron for the ages. Blue-blooded Pauillac.”

- 95-97 Punkte FALSTAFF, Peter Moser: "Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Mit süßen Gewürzen unterlegte reife dunkle Kirschfrucht, zart nach Cassis und Lakritze, ein Hauch von Nougat und Vanille, feiner Edelholztouch, sehr einladendes Bukett. Saftig, feine rote Waldbeeren, aber auch Heidelbeeren, frisch strukturiert, seidige, tragende Tannine, wirkt leichtfüßig, salzige Mineralität, bleibt lange haften, verfügt über eine faszinierende Frische, ein sicheres Zukunftsversprechen."

- 98 Punkte DECANTER, Yohan Castaing: „The nose exudes the same winning combination of dark berry fruit and freshness as well as power and sensual pleasure that has become a hallmark of Pichon Baron. The palate provides the same winning alliance between dense, fleshy texture and delicate freshness. What stands out in this vintage is its already irresistible charm at this stage, which one hopes will last for a long while, but patience over the next 10 years will undoubtedly be rewarded.“

- 98 Punkte DECANTER, Georgina Hindle: „Gentle and delicately aromatic but rich too, full of coffee, mocha, dark chocolate, caramel and medicinal herbs - mint and aniseed with a combination of red, blue and black berry fruits. Lovely density and weight on the palate, really very tannic but wide with an aerated effect so it doesn't feel at all heavy with a bright juiciness and extremely long length. The tannins make the first impression with a velvet texture and chalky minerality but it’s clean and the fruit has a crystalline purity that gives a sleek and direct overall impression. Generous, elegant and refined yet still not showing its best.“

- 96 Punkte DECANTER, Jane Anson: "Intense, concentrated, rippling with power while still delivering finesse. A muscular Pichon Baron, layered with liquorice and chocolate shavings. Unmistakably Pauillac, and hugely Cabernet dominant, with savoury spice notes of grilled cumin and the same muscular, saline-backed tannins that you find in Les Griffons, just here with more definition and depth. 70% new oak for 18 months, 48% of overall production. Harvest September 14 to 30. Yields on the old vines here just above 30hl/ha. Drinking Window 2029 – 2048"

- 18 Punkte JANCIS ROBINSON, James Lawther: "76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot. Cask sample.
Deep crimson hue. Powerful and reserved, the nose dark and restrained with just a nip of vanilla oak and spice. Dense, firm and persistent on the palate, a massive tannic frame heightened by acidity. Powerful and brooding. Will definitely need time."

- 98+ Punkte JEB DUNNUCK: "The flagship 2020 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron is pure gold, a full-bodied, rich, powerful 2020 displaying the vintage's purity, focus, and structure front and center. A blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon and 24% Merlot, its dense purple hue is followed by a mammoth-sized bouquet of cassis, blackberries, smoked earth, graphite, and cedar pencil. With ripe tannins, a seamless, layered mouthfeel, and one heck of a finish, it comes closest in my mind to the estate 2010, and I think is clearly in the same realm as the 1989, 1990, 2000, 2009, 2010, 2015, and 2019. It offers pleasure today, but it certainly warrants 7-8 years, a decade if possible, of bottle age and will have 40-50 years of overall longevity.

- 99 Punkte JAMES SUCKLING: "Fabulous aromas of blackcurrant, blueberry, crushed stone, graphite and lead pencil. Some violets and other flowers, too. Full-bodied with incredibly encompassing tannins that are like the finest velvet in texture. The structure is superb, with so much tension and focus. Seamless. This could be the new 1990 or better. Try after 2028.“

- 19+ Punkte WEINWISSER: "70 % neue Barriques, 18 Monate, 48 % ist Grand Vin. Bouquet mit frischgepflückten schwarzen Johannisbeeren, Lakritze und dunkles Edelholz. Im zweiten Ansatz heller Tabak, tasmanischer Bergpfeffer, erkalteter Waldfrüchtetee und geschnittene Küchenkräuter. Am Gaumen mit seidiger Textur, perfekt ausgereiftem Tanningerüst, betörender Extraktfülle, vibrierender Rasse und durchtrainiertem gestähltem Körper. Im langen Finale Wildkirsche, schwarze Oliven und Estragon, endet mit zarter Adstringenz. Noch besser als in den Vorjahren."

- 19 Punkte Rene Gabriels BORDEAUX TOTAL, Andre Kunz: „(76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 48% der Produktion) Dichtes, samtenes, kräftiges, dunkles, komplexes Bouquet, schwarze Kirschen, schwarze Oliven, Pflaumen, Zimtstange, Vanillemark, Lakritze. Konzentrierter, vielschichtiger, kraftvoller, ausgewogener Gaumen mit kräftiger, dunkler Frucht, fein muskulöser, cremiger Struktur, vielfältiger, kräftiger, süsser Aromatik, sehr langer, dichter, voller Abgang mit vielen Rückaromen. 2028 – 2050“

- 96 Punkte JANE ANSON: „Densely structured, with muscular tannins that confidently hold the cassis and blackberry fruits in check and load up on the Pauillac character. This is great quality, full of liquorice, gunpowder tea and grilled cocoa bean set against plump black fruits and a mouthwateringly fresh finish with eucalyptus and slate. Will be bottled in June 2020 (and go into vat a few months earlier), but will easily need 6 to 8 years in bottle to fully soften. 80% new oak, 48% of overall production, 30hl/h yield. Harvest September 14 to 30.“

- 94-95 Punkte BETTANE & DESSEAUVE

- 93-95 Punkte J. LEVE

- 94 Punkte MARKUS DEL MONEGO