2009 Ch. Léoville-Las Cases, St. Julien

The 2009 Ch. Léoville-Las Cases is an incredible wine. Ripe, creamy, juicy blackcurrants dance across the palate, perfectly in harmony with sweet spice and freshness. Fabulous, intense waves of supple fruit roll on and on in the mouth whilst a massive level of chiselled, Cabernet tannins crash on the tongue and then just disappear. Beautifully harmonious, this has wonderful poise and balance yet the greatness of the wine underneath is clear. This will undoubtedly be one of the wines of the vintage.

Deep purple red, naturally concentrated bouquet over really smooth, sophisticated fruit with a taffeta lift, great purity and depth of vineyard fruit, superb elegance and length.
(Steven Spurrier - Decanter - Apr 2010)

Very deep crimson. Subtle with great depth of fruit and a hint of tobacco. This seems much sweeter and lusher than Léoville Las Cases usually does even if there is a lot of tannin underneath. Really quite voluptuous – what Bruno Borie claimed in Ducru? – but lots of fancy tannin and a bit of alcohol on the finish. Very firm but a bit of a step change with all that sweetness on the top.
(Jancis Robinson MW, jancisrobinson.com - Apr 2010)

The 2009 Leoville Las Cases may be the most open-knit and forward Las Cases I have tasted to date. Analytically, it is high in tannin and the alcohol is 13.8%, nearly a record at this estate. This blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc was showing brilliantly at the 2009 tasting I did in Hong Kong and at a later tasting. It boasts an inky/purple color, monumental concentration and lots of sweet, jammy black currant, black cherry and kirsch fruit intermixed with crushed rock and mineral notes. As always, proprietor Jean-Hubert Delon has built a massive wine with exceptional precision, unbelievable purity and aging potential of 40-50 years. I was surprised by the lusciousness of this cuvee on several occasions, and how much more forward it is given the fact that Las Cases can often be forebodingly backward and in need of 10-15 years of cellaring (at age 30, the 1982 is still a baby in terms of development!). The super-concentrated 2009 needs another 5-7 years before additional nuances emerge. This is a brilliant, full-throttle St.-Julien.
(Robert Parker - Wine Advocate - February 2012)

Black color. What a nose. Black licorice, raspberry, currant and dried flowers galore. Full-bodied and superpowerful, with masses of fruit and toasted oak, but a blockbuster finish of fruit, tannins and everything else. I have never tasted such a flashy sample. I am blown away by this. A more fruit-forward style for Las Cases.
(James Suckling - Wine Spectator - March 2010)