HomeOffer HighlightsChateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande + Pichon Comtesse Reserve 2019 | FINE+RARE
“Extremely long. Fascinating wine. Structure with elegance.”
98-99 POINTS - JAMES SUCKLING
“Unbelievably precise all the way through to the finish, I admit staring at my glass trying to find fault with it... you are not looking at a modern-day 1982 or 2016, but something even better and more profound.”
98-100 POINTS - NEAL MARTIN, VINOUS
“On the palate, the wine is pure silk and velvet. Rich, full-bodied and concentrated, the decadently textured finish, with all its multiple layers of sweet fruits, spice and tobacco stay with you for close to 50 seconds.”
98-100 POINTS - JEFF LEVE
“Extremely long. Fascinating wine. Structure with elegance.”
98-99 POINTS - JAMES SUCKLING
“Unbelievably precise all the way through to the finish, I admit staring at my glass trying to find fault with it... you are not looking at a modern-day 1982 or 2016, but something even better and more profound.”
98-100 POINTS - NEAL MARTIN, VINOUS
“On the palate, the wine is pure silk and velvet. Rich, full-bodied and concentrated, the decadently textured finish, with all its multiple layers of sweet fruits, spice and tobacco stay with you for close to 50 seconds.”
98-100 POINTS - JEFF LEVE
“Extremely long. Fascinating wine. Structure with elegance.”
98-99 POINTS - JAMES SUCKLING
Today sees the release of one of the great Pauillac estates - Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. A winery on incredible form, it has produced a truly outstanding wine in 2019, receiving a number of potential 100-point scores from the critics.
It is in fact just one of two wines from Neal Martin’s report to be awarded a potential 100 points, described by the critic as “unbelievably precise”. It certainly is one of the wines of the vintage and the energy and tension in the wine are mind-blowing. This wine is certainly one of our picks of the vintage.
Nicolas Glumineau, winemaker and CEO at Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande believes they have never made a wine as refined, racy and elegant as the 2019. There is so much depth. It has a precise attack and thick mid-palate; the finish is endless due to a very sharp tannic structure. It is aromatically complex with floral (violet) and fruity notes (blueberry/raspberry), but it is very Pauillac with its graphite and cedar characters.
Nicolas admits he prayed for rain to fall in August. And when it came down he couldn’t believe it, stating “those very rainy hours really saved our lives and they couldn’t have occurred at a better moment.” The success of this wine was really in the balance but the result is utterly breathtaking. This is a profound modern classic.
Expand Product Details
"A serious, muscled Pichon Comtesse that grabs you from the first nose. The width and texture is evident, feeling both more plush and supple in its fruit character. It's elegant and balanced but packed full of textured raspberries, blueberries and cassis, juicy, with a rise on the finish and clear tannic grip. Very Pauillac in style, more so than the 2018 with great length. Not as structured as the 2016 or the 2010 but not far off and this is easily one of the wines of the vintage. Its heft shares some similarities to its neighbour Latour, which is not always the case in this most feminine of Pauillac wines. Closes down pretty quickly on the finish, suggesting the initial rich fruit is a hint of what is to come but that it will take its time to show itself in bottle. Tasted twice, four weeks apart and it delivered both times. No Petit Verdot in this vintage. Drinking Window 2027 - 2040"
98 POINTS - JANE ANSON, DECANTER
"The 2019 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande was picked 16 September to 8 October. It has a showstopping nose: intense black fruit laced with graphite and mint. (Whisper it...it reminds me of their First Growth next door neighbor.) The palate is underpinned by very refined tannins that cradle what may well be the purest fruit you will find in this vintage. Unbelievably precise all the way through to the finish, I admit staring at my glass trying to find fault with it. Unless winemaker Nicolas Glumineau gets distracted by the new Cure album and makes a catastrophic error during the rest of its élevage, which he is not prone to doing, you are not looking at a modern-day 1982 or 2016, but something even better and more profound. Tasted from three bottles with consistent notes."
98-100 POINTS - NEAL MARTIN, VINOUS
"With a complex nose of mint, tobacco leaf, roses, spice, crème de cassis, blackberry, cigar box and spice box, everything is off to a good start. On the palate, the wine is pure silk and velvet. Rich, full-bodied and concentrated, the decadently textured finish, with all its multiple layers of sweet fruits, spice and tobacco stay with you for close to 50 seconds. Comparing the 2016, 2018 and 2019 side by side is going to be an incredible experience over the next several decades. The wine combines 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc reaching 14.1% alcohol with a pH of 3.7. Picking took place September 16-October 8 with yields of 42 hectoliters per hectare. The Grand Vin was made from 50% of the harvest."
98-100 POINTS - JEFF LEVE
"Crazy aromas of sweet tobacco and black fruit. Tar and lead pencil, too. Blackcurrants and blackberries. Solid core of fruit and ripe tannins here. It’s full-bodied and chewy. Extremely long. Fascinating wine. Structure with elegance. Extremely creamy and very, very melted together. A classically proportioned wine. 71% cabernet sauvignon, 23% merlot, and 6% cabernet franc."
98-99 POINTS - JAMES SUCKLING
"A blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc (with no Petit Verdot this year), the 2019 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande came in at an alcohol of 14.15% and a pH of 3.7. Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, it sails out of the glass with a stunning array of Black Forest cake, warm cassis and wild blueberries scents with underlying hints of Morello cherries, redcurrant jelly, pencil shavings, menthol and aniseed with a touch of charcoal. The medium-bodied palate packs a lot of fruit into an elegant package, featuring very finely grained, silt-like tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long with loads of lingering mineral and exotic spice accents."
97-99 POINTS - LISA PERROTTI-BROWN, THE WINE ADVOCATE
"A serious, muscled Pichon Comtesse that grabs you from the first nose. The width and texture is evident, feeling both more plush and supple in its fruit character. It's elegant and balanced but packed full of textured raspberries, blueberries and cassis, juicy, with a rise on the finish and clear tannic grip. Very Pauillac in style, more so than the 2018 with great length. Not as structured as the 2016 or the 2010 but not far off and this is easily one of the wines of the vintage. Its heft shares some similarities to its neighbour Latour, which is not always the case in this most feminine of Pauillac wines. Closes down pretty quickly on the finish, suggesting the initial rich fruit is a hint of what is to come but that it will take its time to show itself in bottle. Tasted twice, four weeks apart and it delivered both times. No Petit Verdot in this vintage. Drinking Window 2027 - 2040"
98 POINTS - JANE ANSON, DECANTER
"The 2019 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande was picked 16 September to 8 October. It has a showstopping nose: intense black fruit laced with graphite and mint. (Whisper it...it reminds me of their First Growth next door neighbor.) The palate is underpinned by very refined tannins that cradle what may well be the purest fruit you will find in this vintage. Unbelievably precise all the way through to the finish, I admit staring at my glass trying to find fault with it. Unless winemaker Nicolas Glumineau gets distracted by the new Cure album and makes a catastrophic error during the rest of its élevage, which he is not prone to doing, you are not looking at a modern-day 1982 or 2016, but something even better and more profound. Tasted from three bottles with consistent notes."
98-100 POINTS - NEAL MARTIN, VINOUS
"With a complex nose of mint, tobacco leaf, roses, spice, crème de cassis, blackberry, cigar box and spice box, everything is off to a good start. On the palate, the wine is pure silk and velvet. Rich, full-bodied and concentrated, the decadently textured finish, with all its multiple layers of sweet fruits, spice and tobacco stay with you for close to 50 seconds. Comparing the 2016, 2018 and 2019 side by side is going to be an incredible experience over the next several decades. The wine combines 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc reaching 14.1% alcohol with a pH of 3.7. Picking took place September 16-October 8 with yields of 42 hectoliters per hectare. The Grand Vin was made from 50% of the harvest."
98-100 POINTS - JEFF LEVE
"Crazy aromas of sweet tobacco and black fruit. Tar and lead pencil, too. Blackcurrants and blackberries. Solid core of fruit and ripe tannins here. It’s full-bodied and chewy. Extremely long. Fascinating wine. Structure with elegance. Extremely creamy and very, very melted together. A classically proportioned wine. 71% cabernet sauvignon, 23% merlot, and 6% cabernet franc."
98-99 POINTS - JAMES SUCKLING
"A blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc (with no Petit Verdot this year), the 2019 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande came in at an alcohol of 14.15% and a pH of 3.7. Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, it sails out of the glass with a stunning array of Black Forest cake, warm cassis and wild blueberries scents with underlying hints of Morello cherries, redcurrant jelly, pencil shavings, menthol and aniseed with a touch of charcoal. The medium-bodied palate packs a lot of fruit into an elegant package, featuring very finely grained, silt-like tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long with loads of lingering mineral and exotic spice accents."
97-99 POINTS - LISA PERROTTI-BROWN, THE WINE ADVOCATE
"A serious, muscled Pichon Comtesse that grabs you from the first nose. The width and texture is evident, feeling both more plush and supple in its fruit character. It's elegant and balanced but packed full of textured raspberries, blueberries and cassis, juicy, with a rise on the finish and clear tannic grip. Very Pauillac in style, more so than the 2018 with great length. Not as structured as the 2016 or the 2010 but not far off and this is easily one of the wines of the vintage. Its heft shares some similarities to its neighbour Latour, which is not always the case in this most feminine of Pauillac wines. Closes down pretty quickly on the finish, suggesting the initial rich fruit is a hint of what is to come but that it will take its time to show itself in bottle. Tasted twice, four weeks apart and it delivered both times. No Petit Verdot in this vintage. Drinking Window 2027 - 2040"
98 POINTS - JANE ANSON, DECANTER
Expand Product Details
"Elegant, refined, fresh and floral, the medium-bodied wine is silky in texture with a gorgeous sense of purity in the fruit. This was made from blending 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, reaching 14.3% alcohol. This is a nice, forward, scaled-down version of the Grand Vin that you can enjoy while waiting for Pichon Lalande to mature."
91-93 POINTS - JEFF LEVE
"The 2019 Réserve de la Comtesse is conspicuously deep in colour. The bouquet takes time to unfurl with exceedingly pure blackberry, raspberry and cassis aromas, the oak seamlessly integrated. The palate is very well balanced with fresh acidity, fine grain tannins, a touch of salinity developing towards the finish that has more grip than previous vintages. Superb."
92-94 POINTS - NEAL MARTIN, VINOUS
"This is a very solid second wine of Pichon Lalande with blackberry, blueberry and sweet, dried-tobacco character. It’s full-bodied, chewy and polished."
93-94 POINTS - JAMES SUCKLING
"Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2019 Reserve de la Comtesse hits the ground running with aromas of warm black and red plums, stewed cherries and mulberries wafting out of the glass plus hints of spice cake, violets, bouquet garni and Ceylon tea. The medium to full-bodied palate appears a bit weightier than the grand vin, with more open-knit, richer fruit at this youthful stage, delivering a plush texture and plenty of freshness, finishing with lingering notes of plum preserves."
92-94 POINTS - LISA PERROTTI-BROWN, THE WINE ADVOCATE
"This is well structured and approaches 2010 in terms of its weight and depth of fruit. Deep spiced damson on the nose, you would be hard pressed not to say that this is as good as very many Cru Bourgeois 1st wines. Huge depth, similar to the 2018 but a little higher acidity, a little less round, a little more classic Pauillac in character. This is confident and serious with lots of tannins. A great 2nd wine, and a reminder of the consistently successful winemaking that is happening at this estate. Drinking Window 2024 - 2038"
93 POINTS - JANE ANSON, DECANTER
"Elegant, refined, fresh and floral, the medium-bodied wine is silky in texture with a gorgeous sense of purity in the fruit. This was made from blending 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, reaching 14.3% alcohol. This is a nice, forward, scaled-down version of the Grand Vin that you can enjoy while waiting for Pichon Lalande to mature."
91-93 POINTS - JEFF LEVE
"The 2019 Réserve de la Comtesse is conspicuously deep in colour. The bouquet takes time to unfurl with exceedingly pure blackberry, raspberry and cassis aromas, the oak seamlessly integrated. The palate is very well balanced with fresh acidity, fine grain tannins, a touch of salinity developing towards the finish that has more grip than previous vintages. Superb."
92-94 POINTS - NEAL MARTIN, VINOUS
"This is a very solid second wine of Pichon Lalande with blackberry, blueberry and sweet, dried-tobacco character. It’s full-bodied, chewy and polished."
93-94 POINTS - JAMES SUCKLING
"Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2019 Reserve de la Comtesse hits the ground running with aromas of warm black and red plums, stewed cherries and mulberries wafting out of the glass plus hints of spice cake, violets, bouquet garni and Ceylon tea. The medium to full-bodied palate appears a bit weightier than the grand vin, with more open-knit, richer fruit at this youthful stage, delivering a plush texture and plenty of freshness, finishing with lingering notes of plum preserves."
92-94 POINTS - LISA PERROTTI-BROWN, THE WINE ADVOCATE
"This is well structured and approaches 2010 in terms of its weight and depth of fruit. Deep spiced damson on the nose, you would be hard pressed not to say that this is as good as very many Cru Bourgeois 1st wines. Huge depth, similar to the 2018 but a little higher acidity, a little less round, a little more classic Pauillac in character. This is confident and serious with lots of tannins. A great 2nd wine, and a reminder of the consistently successful winemaking that is happening at this estate. Drinking Window 2024 - 2038"
93 POINTS - JANE ANSON, DECANTER
"Elegant, refined, fresh and floral, the medium-bodied wine is silky in texture with a gorgeous sense of purity in the fruit. This was made from blending 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, reaching 14.3% alcohol. This is a nice, forward, scaled-down version of the Grand Vin that you can enjoy while waiting for Pichon Lalande to mature."
91-93 POINTS - JEFF LEVE