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Léoville-Las Cases 2005

Château Léoville-Las Cases, Saint-Julien, France

Château Léoville-Las Cases
Saint-Julien France
  • 95
    Points
  • The 1 146 best
    of 3 290 954
    wines globally
  • 10 Pros of
    10 recommend
    this wine
410 95
  • Taste
  • Moment

  • Country ranking ?

    995

  • Producer ranking ?

    21

  • Decanting time

    3h

  • When to drink

    now to 2045

  • Food Pairing

    Poultry and game birds

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WINE SPECTATOR 98/100

Sleek and racy, with black currant and fig fruit laced liberally with a bright iron streak and singed alder notes. This is very tightly coiled, as the fruit seems to be preserved for now, while the cold fireplace character holds sway. A superb energy in reserve gives this more than enough time to wait. Could outlast them all in this vintage.--Blind '01/'03/'05 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2017). Best from 2025 thro...

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The Story

The Grand Vin is the product of exceptional terroirs from the former Léoville estate. These terroirs are located mainly in the Clos Léoville Las Cases, which you pass as you leave Saint- Julien village for Pauillac. They extend over nearly 60ha producing Cabernet Sauvignons and Cabernet Francs with a complex, polished expression and characteristics which are totally unique to the Grand Vin of Léoville du Marquis de Las Cases and have been wide...

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Wine Information

The buds burst at the beginning of April, after a dry and rather cold winter. The blossoming began in the last week of May in good weather conditions and was quick and even on all the grape varieties. The hydric stress became more

visible throughout June, stunting the growth in the young grapes and limiting their size early in the summer. The colour change was quick and even and the bunches continued to ripen through August...

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Latest Pro-tasting notes

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Written Notes

The 2005 Leoville Las Cases was tight and a touch anise-y. Stony and cedary, its nose was much more reticent than the other ‘05s. The palate was also very stony, but its length and breed were outstanding. While a bit muted, and much more reserved already, the Las Cases was still serious stuff. Every case should come with a sign, ‘wake me when it’s over’ (95).
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  • 95p

I owe a great deal to Michel Delon, who for thirty years was the most perfectionist of Médoc administrators. Back in 1982, he generously opened the doors of his estate to me, as well as those of his vision of his “great wine”, born on one half of the estate, the large enclosure adjoining the heart of Château Latour. He also gave me the opportunity to meet and see at work his oenological advisor, Emile Peynaud, founder of the modern French school of oenology, whose knowledge inspired my tasting. In the 1960s, his father Paul, with Peynaud’s help, produced wines that were more precise and distinguished than the First Growths (except Latour), which were not at their best. It was clear that from 1978 onwards, the cru had taken a real step forward in terms of purity of expression, which has never been denied since. For the 2005 vintage, I found many wines, especially on the right bank, weighed down by alcohol and too much new oak. Triumphantly welcomed by the international critics, I described them, with great injustice to an entire profession, as “truck driver wines”. And so they have remained. On the banks of the Gironde, on the grand enclos, and thanks to Cabernet Sauvignon harvested later, on cooler days, the microclimate specific to this sector has produced a wine of rare splendour that I consider to be Michel’s greatest success, heralding the extraordinary wines of today, overseen by his son Jean-Hubert, which benefit from global warming by gaining in body without losing any of their complexity or aromatic nobility.

In a recent vertical tasting, this 2005 showed the same full body and incomparable character of a magical terroir, with the ideal complement of a small percentage of Cabernet Franc that marvellously harmonises with the density of the Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s hard not to admire this ideal blend of vigorous tannic support, straightforward texture and fresh bounce on the palate, which it shares with Château Margaux but with different, slightly more strictly earthy aromas.

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Sleek and racy, with black currant and fig fruit laced liberally with a bright iron streak and singed alder notes. This is very tightly coiled, as the fruit seems to be preserved for now, while the cold fireplace character holds sway. A superb energy in reserve gives this more than enough time to wait. Could outlast them all in this vintage.--Blind '01/'03/'05 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2017). Best from 2025 through 2050. February 2018

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  • 98p
Deep ruby. Deep cassis notes, somewhat floral. Tight nose at this stage. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, mouthwatering, layered but extremelly difficult now. Very long. Wait another decade or two.
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  • 94p
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Origin

St.Julien, Saint-Julien
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