Petit Lion - Saint-Julien 2021

Jamessuckling.com

92-93 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe6/8/2022

A red with deep and focused character of blackberry, blackcurrant and light ink. Lots of flowers, too, It’s medium-bodied with a solid core of fruit and a long finish. Clarity. 57% merlot, 40% cabernet sauvignon and 3% cabernet franc.

Jeb DUNNUCK

89-91 / 100

byJeb Dunnuckthe6/2/2022

The 2021 Le Petit Lion is another rock-solid second wine, which can be hard to find in this more challenging vintage. Based on 57% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc, it has a beautiful, medium-bodied, lively yet still structured style as well as plenty of juicy red and blue fruits and notes of graphite and violets. It's going to drink nicely right out of the gate.

The Vintage Journal

91-92 / 100

byAndrew Caillard MWthe5/17/2022

Medium-deep colour. Fresh blackcurrant pastille marzipan aromas. Very sturdy wine with blackcurrant blackberry graphite notes and fine sinewy/ bittersweet tannins. Chinotto notes at the finish. 57% merlot, 40% cabernet sauvignon, 3% cabernet franc. Maturation in 40% new French oak. 13.27% alc

The Wine Cellar Insider

89-91 / 100

byJeff Levethe5/16/2022

Flowers, cedar, cigar box and tobacco leaf add to the bright, cranberries, orange and red currants in the nose. The wine is medium-bodied, crisp and with a fresh, sweet and tart, crunchy finish. The wine is a blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, 13.27% ABV. Drink from 2025-2037. 89-91

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

91 / 100

byJane Ansonthe5/13/2022

Vinous

90-92 / 100

byNeal Martinthe5/12/2022

The 2021 Le Petit Lion represents one-third of the production from the Clos de Léoville. It is raised 40% new oak. It has a bright bouquet, a mixture of blackberry and blueberry fruit, fine delineation, quite floral and Margaux-like in style. The palate is medium-bodied with edgy, slightly chalky tannins on the entry, a fine salinity here that, for me, marks it out against the La Petite Marquise with quite a persistent tail on the finish. Just needs 2-3 years in bottle. Alcohol level is 13.27% here.

Vinous

92-94 / 100

byAntonio Gallonithe5/11/2022

The 2021 Le Petit Lion is a wine of real breath and textural intensity. Black cherry, plum, leather, spice, menthol, licorice and graphite all build in the glass. The Petit Lion has the potential to be one of the Sleepers of the vintage. It has all the class and breadth of its bigger sibling, but in miniature. I loved it.

vvwine

91-93 / 100

byAdrian Van Velsenthe5/10/2022

Dunkles Rubin. Die Nase erst etwas scheu, braucht Zeit, sich zu öffnen, offenbart dann ein schönes, fruchtiges Bouquet nach Kirschen, schwarzen Johannisbeeren und einem Hauch Mokka, dazu auch Kräuternoten, spannend. Im Gaumen frisch, saftig, klar und rein in der Frucht, eher leichter Körper, feinmaschiges Tannin, das hat so viel Frische, man möchte gleich schlucken. Der Abgang ist geprägt von roten Beeren und einem feinen, minzigen Rückaroma. 2026-2040+ (Verkostet im April 2022. Château Léoville Las Cases)

Anthocyanes

92-94 / 100

byYohan Castaingthe5/6/2022

Assemblages réalisés. Nez légèrement boisé, très frais, mentholé avec des notes de fruits noirs, de violette, de fleurs pour un Petit Lion d'une élégance et d'une belle générosité. Bouche charnue, dense, très Las Cases dans sa construction avec une pointe terrienne et racinaire ainsi qu'une belle austérité médocaine qui reste toutefois enrobante. Une très belle bouteille en devenir. Malgré un pH de 3.54, le vin est particulièrement charmeur. Bravo !

Wine Advocate

88-90 / 100

byWilliam Kelleythe4/29/2022

The 2021 Le Petit Lion unwinds in the glass with aromas of cassis, plums, loamy soil and cigar wrapper. Medium to full-bodied, impressively deep and lively, with powdery tannins and a saline finish, it's the usual mix of mainly young-vine Cabernet Sauvignon and old-vine, less optimally exposed Merlot in a block that borders Latour. (88 - 90)+