Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2019

Not far off the 2018, the 2019 Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste is deeply hued, with a concentrated, yet weightless style. Offering notes of red and black currants, spicy, tobacco, and graphite, with some classic Pauillac lead pencil, this richly textured, balanced, full-bodied effort has fine tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish.

Discreetly matured, even downright closed even after prolonged aeration; on the palate also very restrained, yet what potential! The tannins are of absolute class, with superb polish, minerality, and depth, and in the very long finish one senses hints of ripe berries as well as an especially impressive minerality. A great wine that absolutely needs time to mature.

The 2019 Grand-Puy-Lacoste exhibits notes of minty cassis, plums, loamy soil, burning embers and cigar wrapper, followed by a medium- to full-bodied, rich and velvety palate that’s deep and concentrated, its generous core of lively fruit concealing an elegantly muscular chassis of ripe, powdery tannin. Consisting of fully 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, this is another true classic from the Borie family.

Dark but vibrant and racy, with sleek black currant, blackberry and black cherry puree flavors coursing through, pierced by a graphite spine and backed by tobacco, singed alder and freshly plowed humus notes. The long finish has a smoldering hint without sacrificing the purity of the fruit. Rock-solid. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2024 through 2040. 10,000 cases made.

Generous nose, I love the smell here, richly fruited. The palate is on the linear, darker side with liquorice and coffee tones, lean and muscular—without any extra fat. A little austere at this point but with good freshness and some bright cherry flavours on the finish. Overall a dark, heady, deep style with plenty of power, just waiting to open and expand. Give it some time.

This is a very polished young wine with lemon-rind, blackcurrant, cedar and lavender character. It’s full, yet so refined and sophisticated, with floral undertones to the pretty fruit. The tannins are intense and long. Give this at least five or six years to soften. Try after 2025.

The 2019 Grand-Puy-Lacoste has a well-defined bouquet with cedar and graphite infused black fruit, hints of pencil shavings, controlled and refined. The palate is medium-bodied with filigree tannins, taut and fresh with a pixelated and mineral-driven finish, lingering long in the mouth. What a heavenly 2019 Pauillac. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.

Dark ruby in color, the nose pops with flowers, crème de cassis, blackberry and cigar box notes. The wine is full-bodied, chewy, rich, concentrated and packed from stem to stern with more of that juicy, sweet cassis and red currants. There is a depth of flavor here with soft tannins and a creamy finish. This will drink well younger than many vintages of Grand Puy Lacoste, yet it will age for 3 more decades with ease. Drink from 2030–2055.

Dark ruby garnet with an opaque core, purple reflections, and a delicate edge brightening. Black forest berries, hints of vanilla and nougat, and candied orange zest on the nose. The palate brings juicy, sweet fruit and a fresh acidity allied to powerful, integrated tannins. A chocolaty touch emerges on the finish which shows quite good length and freshness, and there's a salty minerality in the aftertaste. Has ageing potential.

Kunz barrel sample 2020: deep, elegant, dark, velvety, complex bouquet, black cassis, cedar, dark tobacco, Taba tablets, fine licorice. Densely knit, fine, elegant, multi-layered palate with plenty of fine tannins, dense dark fruit, velvety, subtly muscular structure, diverse, concentrated aromatics, very long, dark finish.

Deep, elegant, dark, velvety, complex bouquet, black cassis, cedar, dark tobacco, Taba squares, fine licorice. Densely knit, fine, elegant, multi-layered palate with plenty of fine tannins, dense dark fruit, a velvety, finely muscular structure, varied, concentrated aromatics, and a very long, dark finish. 19/20 2026 - 2055

Inky, glass-staining damson colour, with enjoyable aromatics and a slow-building power that is tempered and softened by waves of violet and peony. Tightly knit, muscular tannins build a wall around the black fruits. This is concentrated, signature Pauillac just as it was En Primeur, majoring on pencil lead, cloves, liquorice, and cocoa bean. Yield of 41 hl/ha, 75% new oak.

A blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon and 17% Merlot, the 2019 Grand-Puy-Lacoste is deep garnet-purple in color. It offers up fragrant notes of lilacs, licorice, and dark chocolate over a core of blackcurrant jelly and blackberry pie. The medium to full-bodied palate is an exercise in elegance, with lovely freshness and fine-grained tannins, finishing long and perfumed.

2019 confirms its status as a fine Pauillac classic, both deep and refined. It is well-focused, very balanced and elegant, with a relaxed texture that asserts itself with obvious ease on the palate. Harmonious and very much in the château’s style.

A sophistication unique to Grand Puy Lacoste, with a warm, welcoming richness this year. Heady floral notes mingle with blood orange and cocoa aromas. True purity and elegance on the palate, with a saline minerality that evokes a charcoal sketch, followed by chalky notes on the finish. A wine that makes you want to go back for more!

Dark, beautiful color with black highlights. Very aromatic nose—refined, fruity, pure, and complex. Swirling releases a subtle, noble note of blackberry jelly. Soft on entry, very delicate in feel, with plenty of aromas and a tannic framework of refined texture; the wine melts on the palate—juicy, complex, powerful yet delicate—combining a rare balance of sweetness with a touch of austerity from the structure. Long finish. Do not miss it. Blend: 83% cabernet sauvignon, 17% merlot.