Countess of Lalande - Château Pichon Longueville - Pauillac 1995 4df5d4d9d819b397555d03cedf085f48

Wine Advocate

96 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe2/28/1998

What sumptuous pleasures await those who purchase either the 1996 or 1995 Pichon-Lalande. It is hard to choose a favorite, although the 1995 is a smoother, more immediately sexy and accessible wine. It is an exquisite example of Pichon-Lalande with the Merlot component giving the wine a coffee/chocolatey/cherry component to go along with the Cabernet Sauvignon's and Cabernet Franc's complex blackberry/cassis fruit. The wine possesses an opaque black/ruby/purple color, and sexy, flamboyant aromatics of pain grille, black fruits, and cedar. Exquisite on the palate, this full-bodied, layered, multidimensional wine should prove to be one of the vintage's most extraordinary success stories. Anticipated maturity: 2001-2020.

Wine Spectator

96 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe1/31/1998

A megawine, with layers of fruit and various levels of character. This exceptional Bordeaux is full-bodied and very tannic, with masses of rich fruit, berry and tobacco. Very velvety. This powerhouse needs time. Best after 2003

Wine Advocate

95 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe1/1/1998

Wine Advocate

94-96 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe2/28/1997

A fabulous effort, the 1995 is Pichon-Lalande's greatest wine since the outstanding back to back vintages of 1982 and 1983. The opaque purple color resembles ink. The wine boasts a knock-out, super-charged nose of jammy black fruits, minerals, licorice, spice, and smoke. Well-endowed, with fabulously concentrated, pure flavors, a layered personality, and a chewy mid-section, this is one of the great wines of this excellent vintage. This wine's compelling purity, extract, and aromatic profile will make it appealing in its youth, but the size, balance, and depth suggest 25 years of aging is possible. Anticipated maturity: 1999-2020.

Wine Advocate

93-95 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe4/30/1996

In 1995, fifty percent of the crop was cut off the vine in a vendange verte (the culling of fruit in order to lower production and increase the concentration of the remaining grapes). That resulted in one of the top dozen wines of the 1995 vintage. This wine was terrific on each of the four occasions I tasted it during the last two weeks of March. The color is an opaque purple. The knock-out set of aromatics offers up smoky, sweet, black-cherry and cassis scents intermingled with hints of coffee and herbs. This ripe, full-bodied wine exhibits outstanding texture, layers of flavor, and a low acid, firmly delineated, moderately tannic finish. I would rate this awesome example of Pichon-Lalande higher than both the outstanding 1989 and the uninspiring, light-weight 1990. Although it will be hard to resist its charms, give it 3-4 years of cellaring after its release and drink it over the subsequent 20+ years. It is a knock-out 1995!