Chateau Leoville Barton 2009

A fresh and complex red wine from Saint-Julien

A 2ème Cru Classé en 1855, Château Léoville Barton is a red wine produced from a 50-hectare vineyard in the Saint-Julien appellation. The vines are planted on a terroir composed of gravelly soils on clayey subsoils. The wine is aged in oak barrels, of which 60% are new. The 2009 vintage blends 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22.5% Merlot and 0.5% Cabernet Franc.

At tasting, the Château Léoville Barton 2009 shows a great opulence. The power of the wine is balanced by its edgy side, which makes it fresh and complex. One may observe flavors of sugar, toast, tar and spices.

Wine Advocate-Parker :
Head and shoulders above its stablemate, Langoa Barton, proprietor Anthony Barton's 2009 Leoville Barton is another massive, excruciatingly rich, tannic, potentially long-aged wine. Meant for consumers with old fashioned tastes, it boasts a dense opaque purple color as well as a bouquet of licorice, forest floor, unsmoked cigar tobacco and a hint of earth. The wine reveals tremendous denseness and richness, a broad, savory mouthfeel and elevated tannins in the finish. However, there is a sweetness to the tannins and no trace of bitterness and astringency, always a sign of a top vintage as well as fully mature grapes. Still a monolithic baby, this 2009 should be forgotten for at least a decade, and consumed over the next 30-50 years.