1928 Château Pichon Longueville Comtésse de Lalande
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One of the finest wines I've tasted from this great château, the 1928 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande wafts from the glass with aromas of cedar wood, dried red fruits, plums, dark berries, sweet spices, camphor and orange rind. Medium to full-bodied, velvety and seamless, it's elegantly layered, with melted tannins, ripe acids and a long, sapid finish. While it's obviously far from youthful as it closes in on its centenary, it remains impressively vibrant.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
Level top shoulder. Good cork. Château bottled with the label of French wine merchant Nicolas. Orangey ruby colour. Sweet, rose-petal aromas with some gaminess. Michael Broadbent was surprised that there was none of 1928's traditional toughness about this wine at all. Minty with some mushroom character. Heady and tarry, it tasted a bit like a sweet, very mature Barolo. (JR)
Finally, we have the 1928 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, a vintage I have tasted twice. Of my three encounters, this is easily the best. It has an immense bouquet with vestiges of red fruit, cedar and blood orange. Sandalwood hints emerge with time. It shows incredible vitality, considering its age. The palate is citrus-fresh on the entry with filigree tannins, almost Burgundian in style with a finish that reminds me of Lafite-Rothschild from this pre-war era. It just tingles on the tongue after it has departed. Bottles with sound provenance will still give pleasure.