CHÂTEAU LÉOVILLE LAS CASES
2010 2ème Cru Classé Saint Julien
| Colour | Red |
| Origin | France, Bordeaux |
| Sub-district | Haut Médoc |
| Village | Saint Julien |
| Classification | 2ème Cru Classé |
| ABV | 13% |
There's depth here. On the nose the cool dryness of a shady corner on a hot day. Leaf and fresh scents of violet and blossom. Hedgerow fruit in cool air. On palate there is flashy purple fruit in a cool, thick elixir-like weight of glossy tannins. Thick but cool and dry. Rather magical. Extraordinary length. Huge but so fresh. Quietly dignified but joyful. Fun as well as seriously grand. Rating: 96+ L&S (Apr 2011)
| 12 | ||
*Case price discount: Mix any 12 bottles of wine (or 9 litre equivalent) or 6 bottles of Champagne, Spirits, Sweet Wine or Fortified (4.5 litres) to get the discounted 'case price' for each bottle.
The 2010 Léoville Las Cases has a clean and precise bouquet, beautifully focused with blackberry, melted tar, cigar humidor and crushed stone aromas. It gains intensity with aeration without ever losing its precision. The palate is medium-bodied with lithe tannins, a fine bead of acidity, a sense of abiding symmetry and detail as it fans out on the mineral-driven finish. This is an absolutely awesome Saint-Julien with a long life ahead. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting. Drinking range: 2026 - 2060 Rating: 96 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2020)
Bright ruby-red. Vibrant nose combines black and blue fruits, lead pencil and crushed-stone minerality, with a note of kirsch emerging with air. Utterly silky in texture yet extremely backward, with a medicinal quality keeping the penetrating dark berry flavors under wraps today. But with a powerful impression of tangy energy, a superb spine of saline minerality, and an extremely long, lively, firmly tannic finish, this classic Las Cases should be a knockout with 12 or 15 years in the bottle. Rating: 95 Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar (Jul 2013)
The cellar master, Rolland Bruno, did everything he could to avoid over-extraction in 2010 and this is still a tannic red, even by Las-Cases’ standards. Beneath the firm outer casing, the wine is fresh, linear and well-balanced with tightly wound cassis fruit, a touch of graphite and green pepper and minerally, refreshing acidity. You’ll need to wait for this wine, but it will be worth it. 25+ years. Rating: 97 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (May 2011)
Château Léoville Las Cases
St Julien Deuxième cru 1855 One of the leading "super-seconds" - a second growth chateau who's wines rival, in terms of quality and often price, the fabled First Growths of the Haut-Médoc. Before the Revolution, the Leoville estate was one of the largest and grandest in the region. At the time, it was in the aristrocratic ownership of the family of the Marquis de Las-Cases-Beauvoir. Unsurprisingly, the Marquis had to flee. To avoid Leoville being seized, the family decided to sell up but the complicated ownership of the estate, which was split between siblings, prevented the sale of Leoville as a whole and, in the end, only a small portion was sold off, to Hugh Barton, and this became Château Leoville Barton. The remainder of the estate came back to the Marquis' family when his son, Pierre-Jean, inherited most of Leoville, the only exception being a small portion inherited by his sister Jeanne. Jeanne's daughter married Baron Jean-Marie de Poyferré and, in 1840, this portion of the estate sheered off to become Château Leoville Poyferré. To stop further divisions among inheriting children, a holding company was founded to own Château Las Cases. Théophile Skawinski, who managed the estate, bought some shares which later passed to his son-in-law André Delon. The Delon family continued to buy share as they became available until, eventually, they became the owners of Château Leoville Las Cases. The bulk of Las Cases's vineyards - the Grand Clos - sit at the very northern end of St Julien, facing Château Latour across the Ruisseau de Juillac. The vines are planted to 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. The hand-picked grapes are fermented in an unusual array of wooden, stainless-steel and cement tanks. Wines spend 20 months in oak, with the proportion of new wood for the grand vin varying from 50% to 100% depending on the vintage. Château Leoville Las Cases have one of the most highly regarded "second wines" in Bordeaux - Clos du Marquis. The first vintage was in 1902, long predating most of its competitors. Its status as a true "second wine" is sometimes disputed, as there is a distinct Clos du Marquis vineyard, a little way to the west of the Grand Clos, although the cuvée does include some declassifications from the grand vin and fruit of younger vines. Its status as a "second wine" also belies the quality which exceeds many of the region's "first" wines.
- For full delivery details see our Delivery page.
- We offer free nationwide* delivery for all orders over £150 with our own vans. We also offer an express delivery service for an additional charge.
- Order & Collect from any of our 5 London shops. Order by Midnight for collection the next working day from 11am.
- Private wine storage: we offer a full In Bond and Duty Paid private wine storage service - find out more here.
RELATED PRODUCTS
2011 CHÂTEAU LANGOA BARTON 3ème Cru Classé Saint Julien
Left Bank Bordeaux France 13% Red
Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon.
Lovely developed rich nose, very pure. Some genuine richness, round, layered. Dense with purple fruit. Tannic but in a nicely crunchy way and still juicy at the end. Quite high-toned, it has natural drive and is juicy an...(read more)
L&SORDER COLLECT
ORDER ONLINE AND COLLECT FROM ONE OF OUR SHOPS