CHÂTEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE BARON
2012 2ème Cru Classé Pauillac
The 2012 Pichon Baron has a fragrant bouquet with well-defined black fruit, cedar and subtle sous-bois aromas, unfolding with a sense of confidence with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, fine acidity, good weight and body. Well-proportioned towards the finish, this is a classy Pauillac and has the edge over Pichon-Lalande at the moment. Tasted twice at Bordeaux Index's Ten Year-On tasting and blind at the Southwold Ten-Year On tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2040 Rating: 94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Sept 2022)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
Real confirmation that these top Pauillacs take their first steps towards being ready to drink at the 10 year window in these 'medium' vintages - compared to 15 in the bigger vintages. This is just stretching its limbs, charming if a little short, showing aumtumnal hedgerow fruits, cracked pepper, cocoa bean, cappucinno. Has power and depth, and is extremely enjoyable. Where in a vertical of the estate it doesn't stand out, in a horizontal across the vintage it really does. 70% new oak. Jean-Rene Matignon technical director. Rating: 94 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (Mar 2022)
The 2012 Pichon Baron is a magnificent wine that exudes freshness on the nose, with razor-sharp graphite notes suffusing the black fruit. The structured, linear palate just “sings” Pauillac; it is not as bold or as ambitious as the 2009 or 2015, yet there is perfect dryness toward the finish that urges you to take another sip. Granted, it is far too soon to broach this wine – I just couldn’t help myself. Drinking range: 2020 - 2045 Rating: 94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2019)
The 2012 Pichon-Longueville Baron is wonderfully aromatic and textured in the glass. Scents of smoke, pipe tobacco and cedar meld into a core of intense dark fruit. Pliant and supple, but with considerable underlying structure, the 2012 is likely to drink well for the next two to three decades, perhaps longer, but it is also going to need at least a few years in bottle for the tannins to soften. Drinking range: 2020 - 2037 Rating: 94 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jan 2016)
A blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot picked between 1st and 17th October, the old vines picked form 8th October. It has a strict, quite conservative bouquet that is very focused: sous-bois, graphite and just a touch of mint. The palate is medium-bodied with a grainy entry. There is a good edginess here lent by the citric acidity with a very composed, harmonious finish that lingers nicely in the mouth. Very fine – but much more classic in style than recent vintages – in fact, more like Latour! Rating: 92-94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2013)
(80% cabernet sauvignon and 20% merlot; 80% new oak): Opaque ruby-purple. Fragrant bouquet of blackberry, violet and spicy graphite. Bright and juicy on the palate, with sneaky concentration and lively acidity lifting the delicate blackcurrant and mineral flavors. Finishes long and tactile, with hints of ink and spice. A very good showing. Rating: 89-91 Ian d'Agata, www.vinousmedia.com (May 2013)
A strong effort from this Pauillac chateau, most of the old vine Cabernet Sauvignon from their parcels near Latour made it into the 2012 Pichon Longueville Baron’s final blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot. A dense purple color is accompanied by an attractive bouquet of incense, cassis, cedar and toasty oak. It is medium to full-bodied as well as bigger, richer and brawnier than most Medoc 2012s. Noticeable tannin in the finish suggests 3-4 years of cellaring is warranted. Drink it over the following two decades. 2016 - 2036 Rating: 90-93 Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, www.RobertParker.com (Apr 2013)
20% Merlot, mostly Cabernet Sauvignon. 15-80 years old. Bright dark crimson. Glows with health. Great vigour on the nose. Amazing sweetness on the front palate. Thick and rich. Cool and fresh. This wine goes to the gym. A little hard on the finish. Needs lots of time but twinkles with health. Lots of energy. Just a tad dry and demanding on the finish. Subtle and (very) dry on the end. 2020 - 2032. Rating: 17 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2013)
Christian Seely says he feels “quite positive about this vintage” and he’s surely right to do so in the case of his grand vin. It’s a stylish, classy, Cabernet-based blend, with plenty of tannin, notes of cinnamon spice and green pepper and very pure cassis flavours. The oak is deftly handled here. Drink: 2020-32. Rating: 93 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2013)
Dense black red, masses of extraction and grip, a truly "masculine" Pauillac for the long-term. Drink: 2018 - 2035 Rating: 17.75 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2013)
Tight, long, fine-grained and statuesque all enveloped in delightful, crisp fruit with a lip-smacking finish. Rating: 18 Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Apr 2013)
Features a bright, lively, leafy edge, with cassis bush and tobacco framing the slightly tangy core of red currant and black cherry, showing a solid note of iron. Cuts a distinctive profile, displaying sappy intensity through the finish Rating: 91-94 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2013)
Château Pichon Longueville Baron
Pauillac Deuxième cru 1855 Facing Château Latour across the road, at the southern end of Pauillac, are the twin Château Pichons. Originally one estate, the two were divided in 1850 on the death of Joseph Pichon. His daughters inherited the portion that became Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, whilst his son Raoul inherited the title of Baron de Longueville and the vineyards of Château Pichon Longueville Baron de Longueville (usually more conveniently referred to as Pichon Baron). The two estates continued to be run as a single vineyard for another ten years, allowing them jointly to be awarded 2nd Growth status in 1855. Raoul built the present château in 1851 on his half of Pichon. At Raoul's death in 1860, the split was formalised and the two Pichons went their relatively seperate ways. By the time AXA Millésimes bought Pichon Baron in 1987, it had fallen a long way behind its sibling neighbour and was in dire need of investment. Investment has been forthcoming from AXA, and expertise from the involvement of Jean-Michel Cazes (of Château Lynch Bages) and, once again, the two Pichons can be seen on a par with one another. There are 73ha of vineyard at Pichon Baron, planted to 70% Cabernet Sauvignon 25% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. Since the installation of the new chais, grapes are fermented in temperature-controlled stainless-steel before spending 18 months in oak (70% new, 30% one year old). The AXA take-over also saw the introduction of a second wine - Les Tourelles de Longueville - in order to tighten up the selection for the grand vin. Inevitably, there is the temptation to compare the two Pichons. With a slightly higher proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon in the cuvée, the Baron is a little more structured and masculine, dare one say offering a little of the feel of its illustrious neighbour Château Latour.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.