Vertical Tasting of Léoville Las Cases

TASTING REPORT

"Léoville Las Cases Verticals": discover Didier Frayssou's report on our Oenoschool tasting of November 2nd, 2016 and benefit from our opinion on 6 different vintages of the great wine of the Marquis de Las Cases, as well as on the 2012 vintages in Clos du Marquis and Petit Lion.

Clos du Marquis 2012 **(*)

A wine with an intense, purple robe and a finely oaked nose, with notes of black fruits and blackcurrant. The attack on the palate is very fruity, round and indulgent. The tannins are melted but the finish is somewhat short.

Petit Lion 2012 ***

A robe slightly less intense than the Clos du Marquis. The nose is similar but slightly more vegetal. The palate is marked by stronger acidity but the wine is much more elegant and long on the palate. It has the breeding of the great wine without the concentration and remains accessible at this young age, which is what one expects from a second wine.

Léoville las Cases 1962 ***(*)

A very light mahogany robe and a complex nose with smoky, meaty notes, cooked fruits and dried flowers, a volatile hint. The palate is admittedly medium-bodied but the wine is very long with a long and smooth finish. A very beautiful wine with fine aromatic complexity and still has fruit. 

Léoville las Cases 1981 ****

A medium-intensity, brick-red robe. A nose of red peppers, dried flowers and tobacco. A wine with substantial body: the palate is fleshy and without vegetal notes with aromas of stewed fruits and tobacco. The tannins are melted, the finish long and smooth. A lovely wine that doesn't show its age.

Léoville Las Cases 1992 ****

A brick-red robe with light mahogany reflections. The nose is quite noble: coffee, cedar, cigar box... The palate is refined, fluid, with great aromatic persistence: we find ripe peppers, liquorice, tobacco as well as beautiful acidity and melted tannins. A great wine in a small vintage

Léoville Las Cases 1989 ***(*)

The robe is quite intense, cloudy, with brick-red reflections. A nose of olive, cooked fruits, tea and grilled peppers. The palate is still somewhat closed, solar but balanced by the estate's usual acidity on blood notes and melted tannins.

Léoville las Cases 1998 ****(*)

A marked intensity for this barely evolved robe. The nose is relatively unexpressive: coffee, cocoa, black fruits. The palate remains reserved. This is a concentrated wine, with present but fleshy tannins. A model of balance that will require another 8 to 10 years to reveal itself. The most beautiful wine of the evening in terms of potential, even if we remain somewhat unsatisfied today.

Léoville las Cases 2003 ****

The robe is close to the 1998, but slightly more evolved, cloudier and more matte. We perceive aromas of cooked fruits, light notes of port, menthol, pine resin and oakiness that still stands out with milky and vanilla notes. The attack is very fruity, the wine is concentrated, very long on the palate but above all without excess alcohol, which is remarkable considering the vintage.

Conclusion: We tasted nose wines (1962, 1981, 1992) which performed very well, with great aromatic elegance, in vintages that were not always easy. But also palate wines - 1989 somewhat disappointing, 2003 remarkable for this atypical vintage and 1998 superb. Nevertheless, there was a real continuity throughout the tasting, both in the freshness of the wines, and in their finesse, their elegance and their austerity close to Pauillac. A continuity that confirms the great elegance and consistency of quality of these wines, for those who know how to wait for them.

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