Albeit the wine is already 14 years old, the nose is still dominated by fruits, with cassis, blueberry and blackberry as the main standouts. In the mouth no sign of age neither, well rounded, elegant and delicate. This wine is very pleasant from the nose to the aftertaste. An outstanding product from a far from perfect vintage.
The 2004 Bordeaux has been a classic vintage that set a record for being the largest crop in Bordeaux history. According to Jancise Robinson, it has been a very demanding year in the vineyard. Only the better estates, whose wines command high prices, could afford the labour needed to thin the crop rigorously in the summer. 2004 is therefore not a year for great performances lower down the status scale, where some producers had to leave unpicked grapes on the vine simply to stay below the authorised yields. On the other side, the best 2004s represent real value.
Léoville-Las Cases, one of the most prominent estates among the Second Growths of Bordeaux, certainly belongs to this category. Situated just across a small stream from the First Growth Château Latour, Léoville-Las Cases was once part of a much larger estate. During the French Revolution a portion of the estate was separated into what is today Château Léoville-Barton and in 1840 the estate was divided a second time when the land that would eventually become Château Léoville-Poyferré was split off.
If I remember correctly from mine Primeur tasting at Château Léoville-Las Cases a few years ago, Las Cases and Poyferré still have a strong connection thanks to the respective winemakers being fiancés.
I drank this nectar from a Magnum that was offered to me along dinner from a friend at his home.
This is the end of 2018 and this is my 100th post on wine since I started following my passion as a wine blogger by reviewing Aigle les Murailles 2015 on June 15 last year.
This hobby has given me great satisfaction and pleasure, not just in drinking the wines, but also in sharing what I know about the wines and regions I’ve been writing about and in learning what I didn’t know.
Today I certainly have a much better taste and understanding for the wine-world than I did when I started this journey 18 months ago.
I hope the readers did enjoy reading my posts as much as I did writing them.
Country: France
Region: Bordeaux
Grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc
Type: Red
Vintage: 2004
Producer: Château Léoville-Las Cases
Price range: Luxury (>100 US$)
Pascal’s Enjoyment Index: 5/5