Pichon Baron - Pauillac 2016

Vinous

93

byNeal Martinthe8/13/2020

The 2016 Pichon Baron has a powerful, menthol-scented bouquet that almost overwhelms the senses. This comes across richer than its peers, almost heady in style. The palate is medium-bodied with thick tannins, layers of rich black fruit laced with pencil lead and a dash of white pepper. An extravagant Pauillac with an uncharacteristically hedonistic finish. Superb, but I have had better bottles. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting. 93+

Jancis Robinson

18

byJancis Robinsonthe2/5/2020

Tasted blind. Dark and lustrous. Proper earthy red bordeaux nose. Suave texture and with lots in reserve. This is quite a wine. Sculpted to within an inch of its life but it should pay dividends in the future. Very dry, St-Estèphe-like stony finish. Needs a lot of time. Drink 2030-2050

Yvesbeck.wine

99

byYves Beckthe3/20/2019

Pourpre intense. Bouquet intensément frais et fruité aux notes de cassis, de cerises et de cèdre. Attaque friande, charmante et ample. Le palais est d'un rare velouté avec des tannins qui s'occupent de conférer une fine puissance et une structure qui tente de contenir l'expression aromatique. Cette dernière envahit littéralement le palais, dès la mise en bouche et jusqu'en fin de bouche. Finale fraiche, fruitée, interminable. Un très très grand Pichon Baron. Probablement un des plus grands avec l'époustouflant 2003 ! Finale persistante. 2026-2056 99/100

Jeb DUNNUCK

97

byJeb Dunnuckthe3/1/2019

The 2016 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron is beauty and is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot that was brought up in 80% new French oak. Tasting like a hypothetical mix of the 2009 and 2010, its deep purple color is followed by a powerful yet sensationally pure bouquet of crème de cassis, blackberries, lead pencil shavings, and graphite, and is just about as quintessentially Pauillac as it gets. Full-bodied, fleshy and even a touch flamboyant, it has sweet tannins and a monster texture that coats the palate. Count me in as a huge fan. This fabulous wine will be relatively approachable in just 3-5 years but will age for 30 years or more.

Wine Spectator

96

byJames Molesworththe2/5/2019

This gushes with dark fig and black currant compote flavors backed by lively sweet tobacco and singed alder edges. Very fleshy in feel, though there's ample grip to keep this red grounded, echoing with tar and humus accents through the finish. A thumper. Best from 2025 through 2040. 13,500 cases made.  –JM

Jamessuckling.com

99

byJames Sucklingthe2/4/2019

The concentration and largesse of the 2016 Pichon Baron is apparent from the get-go with incredibly alluring, ripe and expansive fruit aromas in the blackberry, dark-cherry, mulberry and plum zone. Espresso and cedar, as well as a slate-like, stony mineral edge add complexity. The palate has incredible depth, drive and detail. Fine and plush tannins stretch the palate in every direction. So fresh and vivacious, this is the greatest Pichon Baron since 1989 and has a long future. Try from 2024.

Vinous

96

byNeal Martinthe1/24/2019

The 2016 Pichon-Longueville Baron electrifies the olfactory sense with a stunning bouquet of intense blackberry, cedar and graphite aromas that are quintessential Pauillac. Over a few minutes, it blossoms in the glass, gaining more and more depth. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly tarry black fruit, cedar and truffle, dovetailing into a saline, peppery finish that leaves the tongue tingling. Christian Seely and his team have imbued recent vintages of this Pauillac with unerring symmetry, and the 2016 can be added to the canon of triumphs.

Vinous

96

byAntonio Gallonithe1/21/2019

The 2016 Pichon Baron is seamless and racy from start to finish. Sensual and super-expressive, with soft contours, silky tannins and exceptional finesse, Pichon Baron is one of the more accessible wines in its peer group today. Plum, mocha, leather, spic and chocolate all build effortlessly. As outstanding as Pichon Baron is, the 2016 gives the impression it is playing things safe. It would be nice to see a little more daring and risk.

Wine Advocate

97

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe11/30/2018

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Pichon-Longueville Baron offers a suave and seductive nose of warm red and black currants, black plum preserves, truffles, tapenade and rose hip tea with touches of sandalwood and Chinese five spice plus a waft of iron ore. Medium to full-bodied, firmly structured and packed with mineral and exotic spice-laced black fruits, it finishes very long with compelling herbal sparks.

Decanter.com

96

byJane Ansonthe10/26/2018

WeinWisser

19

byTjark Witzgallthe5/22/2017

85 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 15 % Merlot, 45 % Grand Vin, 80 % neue Barriques. Dichtes Purpur mit satter Mitte und violettem Rand. Komplexes, blaubeeriges Bouquet mit Brombeeren und Lakritze, dahinter Veilchen und erkalteter Früchtetee. Am kräftigen Gaumen mit engmaschigem Tanningerüst, ein Powerpack mit massivem, reifem Tannin. Eine konzentrierte Ansammlung von schwarzer Frucht mit viel Holunder und Schlehensaft – da ist Munition drin, mit einem langen, lauten Finale endend. Jean- René Matignon sieht Parallelen zum Jahrgang 2010, aber mit weniger  Alkohol, hat die Rasse wie beim Jahrgang 1986 (übrigens sein 1. Jahrgang) mit mehr Präzision und klarerer Frucht. Es war wie 2003 eine langsame Reife der Trauben, aber zum Glück ohne die Hitze. Aus den alten Rebstöcken des Cabernet Sauvignon gekeltert! Könnte auch ein 2000er sein mit mehr Frische!

Bettane & Desseauve

97-98

by Bettane & Desseauvethe5/3/2017

Robe noire, corps ample, dense, tendu, rappelant avec peut-être plus de pureté encore 2010, notes de violette et onctuosité de très grand millésime. Le plus fort pourcentage récent de cabernet sauvignon (plus de 80 %).

Wine Advocate

96-98

byNeal Martinthe5/2/2017

The 2016 Pichon-Longueville Baron is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot picked between 3 and 18 October at 39 hectoliters per hectare for estate (therefore the Grand Vin will be less). It is matured in 80% new oak and 20% one year old for 18 months. It has a very intense, extremely pure bouquet with blackberry, bilberry, cedar and graphite notes; it is a straight-down-the-fairway Pauillac. The palate is medium-bodied with a very tensile opening, that seam of graphite penetrating the black fruit. There is a wonderful structure here, unapologetically classic in style with just the right amount of austerity on the aristocratic finish. The aftertaste is incredibly long, lingering after two or three minutes in the mouth. This is a majestic Pichon-Baron and it may well to surpass both the 2009 or 2010

The Wine Cellar Insider

98-100

byJeff Levethe4/27/2017

Astounding color, it’s impossible to see though the wine in the glass. Rich, concentrated, multi-layered and multi-faceted, this is a powerful attention grabber. But it’s also a wine of finesse, freshness and purity. There is a force of flavor and meticulousness that has not been produced in previous vintages. This is one of those wines that coats your palate with precision, fruit and flavor. The tannins are there but they are so ripe and there is such a wealth of fruit, you just do not notice it. The finish, with opulently textured boysenberry, tobacco, dark chocolate, cigar and plum, lasts for a full minute or more! Blended from 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot, this wine reached 13.3% alcohol with a pH of 3.8. The Grand Vin represents only 45% of the harvest, which took place between October 3 and October 18. 

Vinous

93-96

byAntonio Gallonithe4/26/2017

The 2016 Pichon-Longueville Baron is fabulous. In fact, the 2016 is one of the best recent Pichon-Barons I can remember tasting. Smoke, gravel, chocolate, graphite, licorice, leather, black cherry and grilled herbs open up first as the wine shows off its extraordinary aromatic palette. Like so many wines in this vintage, the 2016 delivers serious flavor intensity, but with no excess weight. The richness of the Cabernet, at 85% of the blend, is palpable, as is the quality level. Vivid and deep to the core, the wine finishes with notable density, yet retains its midweight structure.

matthewjukes.com

18,5

byMatthew Jukesthe4/25/2017

(85 Cabernet Sauvignon, 15 Merlot) | 80% new oak | 13.3% alc. | 84 IPT Very dense and firm, but not overly tannic, this is a super-cassis vintage for Pichon Baron with gentle extraction really benefiting this wine. Long, fresh and calm, this is a wine that is built on the slightly smaller Cabernet berries than normal thanks to the hot summer and this gives it a very dark, smooth, vortex of fruit at its core. The result is a wine which I feel will sit side by side with the 2015 in years to come showing two fascinating vintages with equal flair and integrity. 18.5+

Decanter.com

96

byJane Ansonthe4/24/2017

This has some rich liquorice and gingerbread flavours, drawing deeply on the cassis fruits of the 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot. This is incredibly dense and yet feels almost light across the palate. It doesn't have the upfront sexiness of the 2009, this is a more cerebral vintage. Neither does it have the architecture of the 2010, although the technical numbers are quite similar with high tannins and a pH of 3.6. It floats and builds up power slowly, with slightly chalky tannins on the finish. Less of a 'wall' than some recent years, an excellent wine. 45% of the estate's production from 73ha. To be aged in 80% new oak for 18 months. Drinking Window 2027 - 2050

Jancis Robinson

18,5

byJancis Robinsonthe4/21/2017

85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot. 80% new oak. 45% of total production. Dense, dramatic, splashy wine with great balance and lift. Lots of energy and masses of old Cab in here. Really snazzy. Long. 

Wine Enthusiast

96-98

byRoger Vossthe4/19/2017

Barrel Sample. This is a sumptuous wine, its black fruit tones surrounding ripe tannins. It is generous in acidity as well as an open ripe-fruit character. It is concentrated and obviously designed to age well; drink from 2024.

Wine Spectator

96-99

byJames Molesworththe4/10/2017

Has the pure, fresh, racy feel of the vintage, which is even more admirable considering the depth of the red currant, plum and cherry preserve flavors at the core and the power of the structure on the back end, pulling in accents of graphite and loam. A thumper of a Pauillac.—J.M.

Jean-Marc QUARIN

19

byJean-Marc Quarinthe4/10/2017

Le meilleur jamais fait !Couleur sombre, intense, pourpre et belle. Grand nez aromatique, fin, très fruité, pur et quasi velouté. Remarquable entrée en bouche ample où le vin monte et se met à fondre, avec beaucoup d'éclat dans la saveur. Puissant et pourtant aérien dans sa densité, il s'achève long, suave et particulièrement enrobé. Une formidable expression de ce terroir qui ne cesse de progresser dans mes notes depuis 2005. Vous lirez prochainement une verticale comparative de 8 millésimes entre Latour, Pontet Canet et Pichon Baron où ce dernier fut brillant et le plus remarqué.

Jamessuckling.com

98-99

byJames Sucklingthe4/5/2017

I have been waiting for this for a long time. It's a remake of the legendary 1990 Pichon Baron. Full body, ultra-polished yet powerful tannins and a glorious finish. The will evolve beautifully. The core of fruit and tannins are great. A truly great Pichon Baron.