RÉSERVE DE LA COMTESSE
2012 Pauillac
Lively and fine. Juicy. There is real life to this. Lift and grace. Not grand perhaps, but a lovely 'fond' and should be a good drink within five years. Blackcurrant fruit trails the finish, which has a nice line. Rating: 91 L&S (Apr 2013)
* 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.
The 2012 Réserve de la Comtesse has a well-defined pencil box-scented bouquet, tightly-wound black fruit with just a light floral tincture. The palate is medium-bodied with firm grip, a little dry compared to the previous wine [2012 d'Armailhac]. Bullish and assertive with strong tobacco notes on the finish. Where will this go? Tasted blind at the Southwold Ten-Year On tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2030 Rating: 90 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Sept 2022)
The 2012 Reseve de la Comtesse is round, sensual and inviting, with sweet floral notes that give the wine much of its up-front appeal. Silky, polished tannins wrap around a core of black cherry jam, plum, smoke and savory herbs. The 2012 could use a bit more mid-palate depth, but it is an attractive wine to drink now and over the next decade or so. The blend is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. Drinking range: 2016 - 2022 Rating: 89 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jan 2016)
The nose is succulent and fleshy with ripe black plum and cassis. The palate starts with the same depth of flavour lots of prunes and black cherry enriched by rounded tannins. The finish is fresher still black fruited with an attractive black pepper spiciness. 2018-30 Rating: 89-92 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (Dec 2013)
This was tasted from a new oak sample although the finished blend will have one-third new oak. A blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot, the Reserve de la Comtesse has a fleshy ripe, relatively forward bouquet with floral scents emerging with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fleshy ripe black tarry fruit. It is very approachable with a silky smooth texture, although it needs more backbone and tension towards the finish. Rating: 88-90 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2013)
Half of the production went into the second wine, the 2012 Reserve de la Comtesse (64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot). It is a medium-bodied, pleasant, creamy, seductive effort. While it does not possess a great deal of depth, it reveals a dark ruby color, attractive smoky, black currant and plum-like notes and light tannin. Fifty percent of the crop made it into the final blend of 2012 Pichon Lalande, which includes more and more Cabernet Sauvignon under the new ownership of the Roederer Champagne firm. The 2012 is a blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot Rating: 86-88 Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, www.RobertParker.com (Apr 2013)
The team at Pichon-Comtesse did two green harvests in 2012, as well as an enormous amount of selection, to arrive at this level of quality. This is a very accomplished second wine, with notes of graphite and green pepper, focused, minerally acidity, good oak integration and cassis freshness. Drink: 2018-28. Rating: 92 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2013)
Very dark crimson. A bit green and sinewy on the end. Falls away on the finish. Neat but easy. 2017 - 2025. Rating: 16 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2013)
Rating: 16 Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Apr 2013)
Features racy red currant and fig paste notes, with a sleek, iron-framed finish. Displays solid stuffing, exhibiting pleasant austerity to match. Rating: 88-91 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2013)
Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande
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 son Raoul inherited the title of Baron de Longueville and the vineyards of Château Pichon Longueville Baron de Longueville, whilst his daughters inherited the portion that became Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. The only daughter to produce off-spring was Marie-Laure who had married Comte Henri de Lalande in 1818 and it was her descendents, therefore, who shaped the future of Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande (or Pichon Comtesse as it is often more conveniently known). 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. Pichon Comtesse is now owned by the Rouzard family, owners of the Champagne house of Louis Roederer. Under the ownership of May de Lencquesaing in the final quarter of the 20th Century, the vineyard area of Pichon Comtesse grew from around 40ha to today's 75ha. The vines are 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc and 8% Petit Verdot. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel, with the wine spending 18 months in wood (50% new). Pichon Comtesse produce one of the most highly regarded second wines - Réserve de la Comtesse (recently renamed Pichon Comtesse La Réserve') - which rivals many other estate's grand vins. The healthy reputation that Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande enjoys puts it clearly in the mould of a "super second" - those 2nd Growth estates who's wines merit comparison with the Premier Grand Cru Classés. Pichon Comtesse has had the better of comparisons with its sibling Pichon Baron whose fortunes waned during the 20th Century even if, today, they are on a more equal footing. It is inevitable that the two Pichons will be compared with one another, with Comtesse being a more subtle seductive wine than its slightly foresquare namesake.
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.