Château Pichon Comtesse Pauillac 2022 - 2nd Grand Cru Classé

Bettane & Desseauve

About the domain :

The Louis Roederer champagne house acquired this famous cru with the firm intention of making it a model grand cru once again, after several disappointing vintages. A great deal of effort has gone into viticulture, increasingly inspired by organic methods, a state-of-the-art vat room has been built, and the blends have increased the proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon, while retaining the contributions of the other three grape varieties that make the cru so original. The wine has gained in vigor without losing its charm and finesse.

Decanter

About the wine:

Brilliant and striking, this wine enchants from the very first sip, offering an explosion of strawberry and citrus acidity, before salty minerality emerges in the form of chalky tannins, graphite, pencil lead and slate. Very mineral indeed. Elegant and classic in style, with no obvious fruity ripeness, but with a concentration of structure and power that brings out the aromas. Precise and joyful, it's full of power and tension, but where other wines emphasize their strength, this one also offers the juicy acidity and relief that make it so joyful. I love it. 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. 2030-2050

Guide Hachette des vins

About the wine:

A skilful compromise of tenderness and firmness in this vintage that is sure to sparkle in 2022. Ripe black fruit, fresh red fruit, blond tobacco, pepper, rose, pencil lead: the nose, powerful and of rare complexity, enchants and bears the mark of a Cabernet Sauvignon (78%) of very accomplished maturity. The same is true of the palate, which is ample, welcoming and creamy, with its chiselled tannins that are undeniably strong, but also confoundingly charming in texture. The finish, of admirable purity and persistence, on black fruits and freshness, completes this masterful picture. Simply exceptional, this Pichon Comtesse will undoubtedly go down in history. 2030-2050

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About the wine:

Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 2022 turned out even better in bottle than I'd hoped, brimming with blackcurrant and blackberry aromas mingled with scents of licorice, violets and pencil shavings. Full-bodied, complex and enveloping, it is suave, homogeneous and complete, with impeccable precision, perfectly integrated tannins, controlled sweetness and a long, ample finish. The 2022 vintage manages to combine the sensuality, signature of the domaine, and the maturity of the vintage, on the one hand, with Pauillac classicism, on the other, thus offering one of the greatest wines of the vintage and a benchmark Pichon Comtesse. A blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc, it spent 18 months in barrels (3 months more than before), 2/3 of which were new. As I wrote en primeur, this wine is strongly reminiscent of the 1982, and like the latter, the 2022 will offer an exceptionally long tasting window. 2030-2055

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the wine:

The cru strikes a blow with this splendid 2022. It combines everything that makes a mythical bottle: the breed of the Cabernets, the definitiveness of the fruit, the silkiness of texture and refined length. It enters the legend with a bang.

About the domain :

Owned by the Rouzaud family (Louis Roederer champagnes) since 2007, the cru opened a new chapter in its history almost a decade ago. Managed by Nicolas Glumineau, it has since relaunched itself in the race for excellence and intends to regain the position of "super second" it held in the 1980s, thanks to the production of a series of legendary wines (1982, 1986, 1989). If the decade of 2000 was less successful, the latest vintages, delivering a more precise and upright wine, more marked by the Cabernets, are far more convincing.

Wine Enthusiast

James Suckling

About the wine:

Perfect aromas of blackcurrant, pencil, violet, blood orange and blood. A little iron. Medium to full-bodied, this wine has incredible tannins, very present and well integrated, which melt into the wine with a magnificent mouthfeel. The finish is long, slightly austere, but with great sophistication. Racy and rigorously precise. 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. To be enjoyed after 2030, but already a new benchmark for this estate.

Le Figaro vins

About the wine:

A true gift. This wine rises from the glass like a pure, crystalline tenor voice, at once assured and quivering, in perfect balance. Aromas of garden fruits and flowers mingle with subtle notes of pencil lead and cocoa beans. On the palate, it's an explosion of finesse: fruit and flowers intertwine in a bewitching dance. The ravishing finish leaves an indulgent, delicately chocolaty imprint. 2030-2060

Yves Beck

About the wine:

The energy, clarity and power announced by Pichon Comtesse's bouquet border on consternation. From the outset, the wine announces its greatness, without shortcuts, no doubt. The nuances of dark berries, graphite, peppermint, eucalyptus, fresh herbs and elderberry, and the brilliance attached to them, are impressive and invite you to rate the wine without having tasted it. The final step is therefore one of awareness... and pleasure. And the wine does not fail to underline its ability to shine without being intrusive, to seduce without being sweet, to convince without raising its voice. It is elegant, deep, fine, expressive and endlessly persistent. 2028-2057