Benchmark Wines by
Leoville Barton
The Winery
Château Leoville Barton
"One cannot admire enough proprietor Anthony Barton and his classic, potentially long-lived wines that are models of power, elegance, and longevity – in short, these wines symbolize what makes Bordeaux so world-renowned!"
- Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate
Château Leoville Barton, from the St. Julien appellation, is all about over-delivery. A claret drinkers’ dream come true, they boast value, quality, and consistency. The focus is on the wine drinking not investment. Fair pricing usually does not equate with a second growth status, but they are able to save on overhead by not having their own estate. Stylistically they are earthy, velvety, opulent, and full-bodied with excellent overall balance. Some would even say magical. These wines are the epitome of value. Among the best vintages are 1985, 1989, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011.
Tasting Notes
- WA95+
- I found this to be one of the more backward wines of the 2000 vintage and gave it a window of maturity of 2015-2040 when I reviewed it in 2003. In my two recent tastings of it, I changed that window to 2018-2050, which probably says more than the following tasting note could say. This is a behemoth – dense, highly extracted, very tannic, broodingly backward, with a dense purple color and very little evolution since it was bottled 8 years ago. Wonderfully sweet cedar and fruitcake notes are intermixed with hints of creme de cassis, licorice, and earthy forest floor. It is full-bodied and tannic, with everything in place, but like so many wines that come from Leoville Barton, it makes a mockery of many modern-day consumers wanting a wine for immediate gratification. Those who bought it should continue to exercise patience and be proud to own a wonderful classic with five decades of longevity ahead of it.
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