Pichon Longueville au Baron de Pauillac 2010

Administrator Christian Seeley thinks the 2010 is the greatest Pichon Longueville Baron he has ever made, equaling some of the estate’s colossal wines from vintages such as 1989 and 1990. It was certainly showing well when I stopped by the chateau in January. Opaque purple, with loads of charcoal, licorice, incense and some exotic Asian spices along with abundant cassis liqueur, blackberry and hints of roasted coffee and spring flowers, it is full-bodied and opulent, with relatively high tannins, but they have sweetened up considerably and seem less aggressive than they did from barrel. The oak is clearly pushed to the background by the wine’s wealth of fruit, glycerin and full-bodied texture. This sensational Pichon Longueville Baron needs 5-6 years of cellaring, and should keep 30+ years.

Again, a dense and saturated colour. Very polished on the nose – deep set, tightly wound again, but with an extra few ounces of polish and spicy, tobacco-tinged depth. There’s a nice hint of the vegetal too, in a tight but complex nose. Fabulously juicy palate, flushed with cassis and plum, the cherry skin bite of the fruit so keen and delicious, absolutely singing against chocolate and charry notes, coffee and the firm tannin framework, but the lovely fruit and the clarity of the acidity is dazzling. A terrific wine, with serious ageing potential and a glorious complexity already.