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 | 2020 Ch. Léoville Barton - Saint Julien GCC | € 71,00 (€ 85,91) |
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We sommen op in ‘t kort: speelse aroma’s, fijne en superieure tannine verpakt in hemelse complexiteit binnen een lange, intens rijpe proefervaring. Zo proeft dus een overheerlijke Léoville Barton. Jaren zal hij bewaren, maar het vatstaal vertoont opmerkelijke “hic et nunc” buvabilité, ook gespot door Jancis Robinson. Het start met réglisse of zoethout zowel in de stevige Cyrano de Bergerac-neus als in de Roxane-attaque op het palet, met cassis, menthol en ceder gevolgd door bosvruchten en kruid. Deze precieze wijn is één in zuiverheid en evenwicht. De allure van de proefervaring, zuivere densiteit en geheel genietbare balans haalt ons moeiteloos over de streep, terwijl we het bewaarpotentieel al bijna onder ogen zien doorheen de rijkelijk imposante, al bijna versmolten tannine. 85,5% Cabernet Sauvignon en 14,5% Merlot op 60% nieuwe eik. De oogst vond plaats tussen 14 en 28 september voor een rendement van slechts 34hl/ha en dus beperkt beschikbaar Dit bijzonder Saint-Julien archetype schat ik in 2020 misschien nog nét iets hoger in dan het altijd heerlijke Léoville Poyferré. Althans dit is mijn lovende impressie. IN DE PERS 96-97 James Suckling – jamessuckling.com (April 2021) A full-bodied red that builds on the palate with lots of blackberry and blueberry character, as well as chocolate. Mineral and graphite undertones. Chewy, yet very integrated. Excellent, as expected. 94-96 Neal Martin - vinous.com (Mei 2021) The 2020 Léoville Barton was picked September 15–16 and matured in 70% new oak. It is one of the best vintages that I have encountered in barrel. Wow! This shoots from the glass with beautifully defined black fruit, mineral-rich aromas, pixelated with laser-like focus. The palate is medium-bodied with chiseled tannins, a perfect line of acidity, layers of vibrant, vivacious black fruit and a very persistent finish that is pure class. If you don’t have this in your cellar, then there will be a Léoville Barton–shaped hole to fill. Drink 2028-2055. 94-96 Antonio Galloni - vinous.com (Mei 2021) The 2020 Léoville-Barton marries the richness of the vintage with the classically restrained style that is so typical of Léoville-Barton. Graphite, licorice and dark spice are all laced throughout a core of inky dark fruit. The 2020 is powerful and linear, with tons of depth lying in reserve, just waiting to emerge. I won't be surprised if Léoville-Barton is one of the last Saint-Juliens to enter its prime. 95+ William Kelley - robertparker.com (April 2023) A superb wine, the 2020 Léoville Barton exhibits generous aromas of blackberries and crème de cassis mingled with hints of licorice, pencil shavings and classy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, broad and fleshy, with a concentrated core of fruit, sweet tannins and a nicely defined finish, it bears some similarities with the estate's demonstrative 2000 vintage, even if the two growing seasons were quite different. I suspect it will tighten up with more time in bottle, hence the plus sign next to my score, but right now, the 2020 is unusually accessible out of the gates. Drink 2027-2055. This great Médoc second growth has been on a qualitative roll in recent vintages, and the estate's brand new winery and chai, equipped with smaller fermentation vats to permit more precise parcel-by-parcel selection, will surely see Léoville and Langoa Barton hit even greater heights. The 2019 vintage, however, made in the old winery, has turned out superbly, uniting the Barton family's signature Cabernet-driven classicism with all the fleshy, perfumed charm of the vintage. In the vineyards, a steadily increasing percentage is farmed organically, and the old manual methods are perpetuated (tying the vines to their supporting stakes using osier instead of string, removing lateral shoots by hand, etc.). As proprietors of much of the appellation's woodland, the Barton family have always been at the forefront of newly fashionable "agroforestry." And periodic replanting increasingly aims to adapt grape variety to soil type, the heart of Léoville-Barton being of course Cabernet Sauvignon growing on the superbly situated quaternary gravel soils of Saint-Julien. In the cellar, barrels are largely supplied by Nadalié, Maury and Taransaud, and racking is traditional. A comparatively large percentage of press wine lends backbone and classic grip to the assemblage. 93-95 Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW - robertparker.com (Mei 2021) The 2020 Léoville Barton reveals a deep purple-black color, springing from the glass with vivacious scents of crushed black cherries, cassis and black raspberries, plus hints of cinnamon toast, wild sage, red roses and sassafras. The medium to full-bodied palate is packed with muscular black fruits, framed by grainy tannins and loads of freshness, finishing long and perfumed. Drink 2026 – 2047. 18/20 Jancis Robinson – jancisrobinson.com (Mei 2021) Full bottle 1,345 g. Cask sample taken 6 April. 85.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14.5% Merlot. Aged for 18 months in barrel (60% new). Lustrous purple. Minerally, stony, saline nose. Really remarkably opulent on palate entry which almost distracts from those massive tannins underneath. There's just a suggestion of vintage port tannins here (not the sweetness). Very fine winemaking indeed. I have to admit I was tempted to swallow this, it was so majestic. I don't remember being as bowled over by a Léoville Barton at this early stage before. Lovely, confident, persistent finish. Such grace! 13.6%. Drink 2030 – 2055. 94 Jane Anson – decanter.com (Mei 2021) Packed full of black chocolate shavings, liquorice, cocoa bean, concentrated cassis and bilberry fruits. Good quality, will bed down and age extremely well, with depth and character but also classicism. As with many in this corner of the Médoc peninsula in this vintage, the austerity to the tannins is very much to the fore right now. May be upscored when in bottle. Drinking Window 2029 – 2045. 95-97 Jeff Leve – winecellarinsider.com (Mei 2021) Inky in color, it takes only one sniff to see how much ripe fruit is packed in here. Blackberry, currants, smoky cherries, tobacco leaf, cedar, flowers and creme de cassis aromas come on strong. The wine is full-bodied, bold, powerful, tannic, balanced and fresh. The palate filling finish is long, energetic, rich and expansive. This is a superb vintage of Leoville Barton that will need at least a decade in the cellar and will age and evolve for another 2-3 decades after that. 95-97 Jeb Dunnuck – jebdunnuck.com (Mei 2021) Deep purple – almost blue – in color, the 2020 Château Léoville Barton offers up an exotic, vibrant, perfumed nose that carries loads of pure cassis fruit interwoven with violets, sappy green herbs, and floral aromatics. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and concentrated, this thick, chewy, powerful Saint-Julien has good acidity, building, firm, yet ripe tannins, and a great finish. My money is on this requiring 15 years to come anywhere close to maturity. It doesn’t get any more classic Barton than this. 93-94 Michael Schuster – The World of Fine Wine (Mei 2021) (85% CS, 15% M; 34hl/ha; 13.6% ABV; 60% new). Inky purple; dense, closed, raw blackcurrant and subtle gravel; concentrated, medium- to full-bodied, muscular wine, firm in acidity and firmly tannic, a clear long-term prospect, but without the sinews of 2010, for example; crisply ripe blackcurrant in flavor, long to taste across the palate, with a notable tenacity rather than sheer size. Elegance, complexity, finesse, and length. A sort of 1996 with more matter? This will probably need a decade and a half to really mellow and “bouquet.” 2030–50+. 92-94 Yohan Castaing – anthocyanes.fr (Mei 2021) 95-96 Bettane & Desseauve (Mei 2021) 96-97 Terres des Vins (Mei 2021) Léoville BartonLeoville Barton is een vaste waarde voor elke Bordeauxdrinker en is een jaarlijkse aankoop waard. Als traditionele bewaarwijn en 2ème Grand Cru Classé Saint Julien behoort hij steevast tot de beste wijnen in elk millésime. Die mooie kwaliteit haalt hij met een schijnbaar gemak, terwijl zijn prijs altijd de vergelijking met gelijken doorstaat. Dit is het Château in de Médoc die al het langst in handen is van één en dezelfde familie: de Bartons. De 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, heraangeplant in de jaren 1980, domineert van het assemblage en wordt aangevuld met 23% Merlot en 3% Cabernet Franc. De wijngaard van 51 hectare is aangeplant met een densiteit van 9.100 wijnstokken per hectare; ze zijn gemiddeld 38 jaar oud in 2018. Een ruime jaarlijkse productie van 20.000 kisten komt zijn populariteit ten goede. La Réserve de Léoville Barton is zijn voortreffelijke tweede wijn. BartonAnthony Barton was één van de meest gerespecteerde persoonlijkheden in de Médoc. Hij overleed in 2022 en was de achtste generatie van de familie achter Léoville Barton en Langoa Barton in Saint Julien en inmiddels ook Mauvesin Barton in Moulis en Médoc. De familie Barton is een Engelse familie die in Ierland aankwam in de XVIIde Eeuw. In 1722 kwam zeevaarder Thomas Barton zich vestigen in Bordeaux om er wijn te exporteren naar Ierland, toen een even grote afzetmarkt als Engeland. Zijn kleinzoon Hugh kocht in 1821 Langoa en in 1826 zelfs een kwart van het Château de Léoville van de Marquis de las Cases (oorspronkelijk vormden las Cases, Poyferré en Barton één geheel). De negende en tiende generaties tekenen nog altijd present met dochter Lilian en kleinzoon Damien. Hun lijfspreuk klinkt toepasselijk: “Fide et Fortitudine”. De familie is op vandaag de oudste familie van Château-eigenaars in de Médoc. |