2006 Château Léoville Poyferré, St Julien, Bordeaux

73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot.

Deep crimson. It's starting to fade at the rim. Sweet, concentrated, but spicy nose with some dustiness on the edge of the palate. Really muscular and fine. Long. Beautifully constructed. It's luscious enough for current drinking but obviously has masses of potential. Ripe tannins.

Drink 2015 - 2040

Wonderful aromatics that display beautiful aromas of bramble fruits, evolving with age into glowing embers without sacrificing fruit. A rich smoked chicory note is evident that sets Léoville Poyferré apart from the other two Bordeaux Léovilles. Still young and crackling with life with undeniable exoticism. There is a real sense of lift through the palate and excellent persistency.

Drink 2018 - 2034

The 2006 Léoville-Poyferré has an impressive Cabernet-driven nose, almost Pauillac-like, with pencil box and mint aromas infusing the vivacious black fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins that are very smooth in the mouth, although not amazingly complex. 

Perhaps here, it has lost some of its youthful zest, though there is an impressive muscle with plenty of cedar-infused red fruit laced with white pepper on the finish. Fine, but where is it going to go?

Drink 2021 - 2032

Dense ruby/purple, with sweet blackberry and black currant fruit with hints of smoke, espresso roast, and new saddle leather, this is another impressively endowed but tannic, backward style of wine. The concentration, brightness, and depth are all present, but I can't see it being even approachable in less than 5-7 years. 

Anticipated maturity: 2015 - 2028

Full ruby-red. Ripe aromas of currant, milk chocolate and smoky oak. Lush, sweet and full, with super ripe yet backward flavours of dark berries, dark chocolate and minerals. Wonderfully layered, structured wine whose excellent vinosity and firm tannins call for several years of patience.