2003 Pichon Baron
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Tasting notes
65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot. Aged 15 months in oak barrels (70% new). Red to brick-red colour. Two bottles tasted, the first less expressive. Second bottle, richer on the nose but not overly detailed. Some sweetness to the palate provides a supple, gourmand edge. Tannins hard and grainy behind but sufficient flesh to temper them. Warmth of the vintage evident. Holding up but unlikely to gain more complexity. (JL)
Critic scores
Average Score
Wine Spectator
Robert Parker
More reviews and scores
A famously hot dry year that could be challenging on well-draining gravel soils, but this has held up well, majoring on cinnamon and turmeric spice, touches of black chocolate and liquorice. Soft tobacco notes on the finish, you know you are in Pauillac here, because the tannins are still present and confident even at 19 years old, and there is a mouthwatering edge of salinity on the finish. No need to wait, but also no great rush to drink up. 70% new oak. Jean-Rene Matignon technical director.
The 2003 Pichon-Baron has one of the better aromatics this vintage compared to its peers, featuring mulberry and cranberry fruit, orange peel, leather and a touch of star anise. The palate is medium-bodied with furry tannins and lower acidity than the 2002, yet more freshness than in many Left Bank wines. It shows commendable depth and volume, offering attractive tarry, lightly spiced black fruit toward a sinewy finish that shows more energy than you would expect given the infamous heat of that summer. (NM)
About the producer
Pauillac’s Ch. Pichon Baron, formerly known as Ch. Pichon-Longueville Baron, is ranked as one of the 15 Second Growths from the 1855 Classification and is considered one of the "Super Seconds".