Updated: May 23, 2024
The 2015 Langoa Barton wine presents a deep, ruby colour with a tight rim. It is fresh, balanced, and clean on the nose, with an intense red fruit bouquet complemented by hints of sous-bois and tobacco. The texture is fleshy and friendly, with a slight spiciness. The tannins are present, but they don't overpower the palate, which is chalky and silky. The finish is long and tense, with the tannins coming through in the medium-bodied palate and the flavours and fruits lingering in the background. The finish is chalky and spicy, resulting from the 54% Cabernet Sauvignon blend, 38% Merlot, and 8% Cabernet Franc, three weeks of ageing, and 60% new oak. Overall, it is a wine that leans towards Pauillac, particularly in the finish, making it a unique and exciting choice for wine enthusiasts.
The 2015 Langoa Barton wine has consistently scored high, from 93 to 94. These scores, a testament to its quality, will resonate with wine enthusiasts and potential buyers alike.
Rated RP93, The 2015 Langoa Barton wine is a testament to the art of winemaking. It boasts a precise, understated, focused bouquet of pure blackberry and wild strawberry fruit with a hint of graphite and crushed stone. As it matures, it becomes more floral, revealing incense and a touch of lavender. The medium-bodied palate offers supple tannin and beautiful, irresistible black fruit. This is a silky-smooth and velvety wine with a sensual and persistent finish. It can be enjoyed now, although its true potential shines with time in a bottle. This is another Saint-Julien that has improved over the last year and was blind-tasted at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting, a testament to its quality and ageing potential.
JS94. This 2015 is Layered and juicy, with currants, light chocolate, and cedar character. It’s full-bodied, round-textured, and very pretty. It's extremely long and flavorful. It's so friendly and bright. Drink or hold. Edited.
JD94. At seven years old, I was still majoring in primary fruit aromatics. The tannins and structure are precision and silky, which means the black cherry and raspberry fruits remain taut and almost austere at first before deepening out through the mid-palate, gathering together richer nuances of oyster shell, cocoa bean, and espresso. The great texture and depth of expression will benefit from another 3 to 5 years in a bottle—70% new oak. Edited.
The wines were lighter than expected for the reds without the heavy structure required for long-term aging. As a result, they are relatively for early drinking, which is about the right time now. However, some excellent examples were still with the best exhibiting plush forest fruit, ripe tannins and well-balanced acidity. While it is true that all wines tended to lack body and ripe fruit while staying incredibly tannic, the wines we selected here are relatively bodied by a higher merlot content(for example, Cantemerle, Giscours, La Lagfne, Malescote St Eupery, Montrose and Pontet Canet) than usual.
The 2007 vintage was not spectacular for Bordeaux, but some good wines were still made, especially regarding the top Cabernet of the Left Bank. However, even the best wines were hard-pushed to deliver at the prices they were initially asking. Most wines will likely be near their best; the very best may be drinking well now. They are of great value.
I tasted 2011 and 2012 in a roll in Hong Kong(Hong Kong Regent?). From memory, 2011 is lovely in a light, fresh style for juicy, elegant wines. 2012 is friendlier, slightly riper and fruitier.
After 10+ years, 2011 had much to live up to, and they do. Under the shadow of 2009 and 2010, which were about power and richness, the 2011s, in this case, are more on structure(Gloria, Kirwan), brightness(Lagrange) and perfume(d'Issan, Pape Clement). Indeed, 2011 is attractive earlier than its older counterparts and is of excellent value. Compared to the 2012s, 2011s are silkier. Unfortunately, even though the character of the vintage allowed for these more accessible wines they should, some producers opted instead for more power than finesse, a mistake in this problematic vintage.
