2015 Les Tourelles de Longueville, Pauillac, Bordeaux
Description
The wines of Château Pichon-Longueville-Baron are among the glossiest and most succulent of Pauillac and Les Tourelles de Longueville, the property’s second wine, is a delicious expression of this in miniature. The fruit, led by Merlot, is accessible, juicy and supple, with creamy vanilla from 30% new oak providing the base. The use of oak at this château is always exemplary; the class of this wine is unmistakable. The château harvests from vines on the sandier parts of its vineyard to make a wine that is accessible quite early, but there is ample material here to last a decade.
Drink 2019 - 2026
Berry Bros. & Rudd
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Colour
Red -
Sweetness
Dry -
Vintage
2015 -
Alcohol
13.5% -
Grape
Merlot,Cabernet Sauvignon,Cabernet Franc,Petit Verdot -
Body
Medium Bodied -
Producer
Château Pichon-Longueville Baron
Critics reviews
The 2015 Les Tourelles de Longueville has much to offer. Bold, vibrant and impeccable in its balance, the 2015 is beautifully delineated and classy. Sweet red cherry, white pepper, leather and mint give the flavours a distinctly bright upper register of nuance. There is lovely brightness running through the Tourelles that keeps the flavours bright. The Tourelles is the chateau's Merlot-based red and is a bit of an outlier relative to the other wines in this range.
Drink 2018 - 2030
A straight-shooting Pauillac with quite brash structural appeal and youthful tannins that carve out a linear shape. Plenty of dark-berry flavors here.
Try from 2021
Tasted blind. Lots of fruit and flesh but a bit dull and stodgy. Clean and fresh. Long.
Drink 2023 - 2032
The 'other' second wine from Pichon Baron is not quite as accomplished and sexy as the Griffons in this vintage, perhaps because the Merlot suffered more from September rains, and so feels a touch more diluted. It's still a well-made and enjoyable wine, that can be approached at an earlier date than Les Griffons, but the mid-palate is lacking. 5% Petit Verdot finishes the blend. 30% new oak.
Drink 2020 - 2030
The 2015 Les Tourelles de Longueville is a blend of 55% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot that will be aged in 70% one-year-old barrels and 30% new wood. Harvest was between 18 September and 9 October, the fruit mainly from the "Sainte-Anne" terroir. It has a winsome bouquet in the making, almost Margaux-like with its hints of wilted violet petals coming through.
The oak is nicely integrated here, as it is on the palate, medium-bodied with fine, saturated tannin, well-judged acidity and impressive depth on the tensile finish. An impressive Les Tourelles that, as always, has one eye on commercial appeal.
Drink 2020 - 2038