CHÂTEAU LÉOVILLE BARTON
2015 2ème Cru Classé Saint Julien
Léoville has the aristo cut and dash that Langoa does in softness and charm. But this is not too massive nor too intensely concentrated, it should drink at 8-15 years old. A faint hint of menthol, a fine, firm, grippy style, so black in expression it's barely fruit, with chalky, Nebbiolo-ish tannins. Classic black dry aromas and firm spicy tannins, and a sense of energy too. Lovely finish with lots going on. Rating: 94-95 L&S (Apr 2016)
* 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 2015 Léoville Barton is one of the few Saint-Julien wines to show a bit of sur-maturité on the nose. Hints of tinned prune infuse the black cherry fruit. The palate is ripe, very sweet and plush in style. It has a note of peppermint toward the finish that is rather distracting and otiose. Given how this has shown before, I will not rate this. Tasted blind at the 2015 Bordeaux Ten-Year-On tasting at Farr Vintners. Rating: 0 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Jun 2025)
The 2015 Léoville Barton has one of the richest bouquets in the appellation, boasting almost ostentatious blackberry, raspberry and bilberry scents on the nose, suffused with crushed limestone and light graphite aromas. The medium-bodied palate is taut and crisp, delivering a fine bead of acidity and freshness from beginning to end. Mainly black fruit here, with suggestions of leather and mocha toward the finish. Superb. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. Rating: 95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Jul 2019)
This is a very focused Barton with ultra-fine tannins that are so polished and chalky. It drives through the center palate with currant and berry character. Full-bodied, polished and straightforward with driving tannin. Love the texture. Class. Yes. Drinking range: 2021 - Rating: 96 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Feb 2018)
A dense, powerful wine, the 2015 Léoville-Barton is going to need quite a bit of time to come together, as it is massively tannic and structured at this stage. Drinking range: 2025 - 2055 Rating: 96 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2018)
Deep crimson. Fresh and zesty. Much more lifted than its Langoa stablemate. Really rather glorious actually. Very fresh but with slaty undertow. Now this is a 'mineral' wine! Drinking range: 2028 - 2045 Rating: 18 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Nov 2017)
Grippy and quite backward - as it often tends to be at this early stage - but this has plenty of fruit power and concentration in reserve, with fine tannins and stylish oak integration. One for the cellar. Drinking range: 2025 - 2035 Rating: 94 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (May 2016)
This is 86% Cabernet Sauvignon (picked September 28th to October 5th) with 14% Merlot (picked September 19th to the 22nd). Alcohol 13%. A rather restrained, sweet, dusty and perfumed blackcurrant nose, although a second sample is more forceful and expressive. A touch smoky, with some almond chocolate notes. A very pure palate, medium-bodied, poised and elegant but in a polished and confident style, rather wrapped up in oaky vanillin lactones on this showing, which lifts the deliciously ripe tannic core to a greater prominence. A very nice potential here, with lovely fruit character, ripe and classically poised, restrained and understated. Rating: 16-17/20 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2016)
Fine concentration of fruit and lovely fragrance; quite discreet for this château. The controlled vigour of better vintages has been replaced by classic ripeness, integrated tannins and fine balance. Drinking range: 2023 - 2040 Rating: 93 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2016)
Glowing purplish crimson. Very obviously 'sweeter' and chunkier than the Langoa Barton just tasted. But not too much. Full of appeal. And there is masses of tannin here! Lots going on here. Drinking range: 2027 - 2045Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2016)
The 2015 Leoville Barton is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot picked between 19-22 September and 28 September until 5 October for the Merlot and Cabernet respectively. Matured in 60% new oak, it has a more compelling and intense bouquet than the 2015 Langoa Barton at this early stage, whereas in other years I have found the siblings closer together. It delivers some lovely blackberry, sage and cigar box scents. The palate is very refined with edgy tannin, beautifully balanced with seamlessly integrated oak. It is the classic Léoville-Barton style, full of energy and showing more breeding than the Langoa on the finish. This is just an outstanding, classic, drop-dead gorgeous Léoville Barton that is destined to give immense pleasure over the coming years. Bravo Anthony, Lilian et al. Drinking range: 2025 - 2055 Rating: 94-96 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2016)
The 2015 Léoville-Barton is superb. Vivid and wonderfully nuanced in the glass, the 2015 offers exceptional purity in its aromas and flavors. As always, the house style favors finesse over pure power, but in 2015 there is a good bit of both. Graphite, pencil shavings and crème de cassis, herbs and mocha meld into a rich, textured, beautifully persistent finish. The tannins are there, but they are nearly buried. Léoville-Barton is not the most powerful or showy Saint-Julien in 2015, but it is class personified. Don't miss it. Rating: 93-96 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2016)
Gutsy, with mouthfilling blackberry and black currant compote flavors buttressed with very lively bramble and licorice notes. There's loads of grip, but this is velvety in feel. Rating: 92—95 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2016)
A very savory and fruity red with red currant and plum aromas and flavors. Full body, firm backbone of tannins and a fresh finish. A generous and fruity young red. Fruity forward in a reserved way. Rating: 94-95 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Mar 2016)
Château Léoville Barton
Saint Julien Deuxième Cru Classé 1855
The story of the Irish Bartons in Bordeaux started as early as 1725, when Thomas Barton arrived in Bordeaux. Thomas worked as a merchant, mostly investing his gains in Ireland, as at the time property of foreigners was forfeit to the French crown on the owner’s death – but he did own Château le Boscq in Saint Estèphe at one point. When ‘French Tom’ died at the grand age of 85 in 1780, all his property went to his son William, who was clearly a more difficult character. The wine business was handed to William’s fourth son Hugh, as the older brothers all inherited estates in Ireland. Hugh took on, in 1786 at the age of 20, a wine business turning over £2.5M. Having married Anna Johnston, the daughter of another Anglo-Irish family in Bordeaux, he managed it effectively until he as his wife were thrown into prison in 1793 during the revolution. Hugh and Anna were unexpectedly freed later that year. As their assets had been seized, and presumably fearing for their lives, they moved back to England and Ireland, although keeping close ties with Bordeaux. The company continued to flourish despite all this, and in 1821 Hugh was able to buy Château Pontet Langlois, which he renamed Langoa Barton. Shortly after, in 1826, he also bought a part of the Léoville estate, which became Léoville Barton. Hugh's original intention, so it is said, in purchasing a portion of the Léoville estate was to sell it back to the Marquis de Las-Cases-Beauvoir who had fled France during the Revolution. The Léoville estate had been seized with an eye to selling it off, but in the end only Hugh’s quarter of it was sold and when the emigré Marquis returned without sufficient means to buy it back, Hugh’s part stayed with the Barton family, becoming Château Léoville Barton. Hugh also bought land in Kildare county and built Straffan House, where Anthony Barton was born in 1930.
The Bartons continued to live mostly in England and Ireland until Ronald Barton arrived in Bordeaux in 1924. Ronald’s father had bought out his cousins, so Ronald inherited the whole of both properties, and he was keenly interested in the vineyards and wines. His career was interrupted by the war, and there was much to do to bring the property back to good order after it, but the success of some of the great vintages of the post-war period like 1948, 1949, 1953, 1955 and 1959 are monuments to what he achieved. Ronald handed over the two Châteaux to his nephew Anthony in 1983, three years before his death.
Anthony worked for the merchant company, Barton & Guestier, which had been bought by Seagram, until 1967. After that he started his own company ‘Les Vins Fins Anthony Barton’ – it was only in 1986 that he and his Danish wife Eva were able to move into Langoa and he was able to devote himself to the vineyards. Anthony’s daughter, Lilian Barton-Sartorius, joined him in the merchant business in 1978, sharing and finally taking over the responsibility for the properties too, and in turn her children, Mélanie, the first oenologist in the family, and Damien, (who completed a short stage at the great commercial finishing school of Lea & Sandeman), have joined her. Mélanie is the technical director of the family’s third Médoc property, Château Mauvesin Barton.
The 50 hectare vineyard of Léoville Barton is on one of the most beautiful deep banks of Pyrenean gravels in the Médoc, part of the bank that is closest to the Gironde, continuing southward from Las Cases and Poyferré, with Ducru Beaucaillou beyond, which gives it a free-draining upper layer over a clay base which is good for retaining moisture in the driest conditions. It is planted with 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, and managed to retain a high proportion of old vines. It was classified as a 2nd Grand Cru Classé on 1855, when it was already owned by the Bartons, making the family one of the oldest continuous owners in the Médoc (with the Rothchilds at Mouton).
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.