Chateau Grand-Puy-Lacoste

The elegance and finesse of the vintage plays to the strengths of Ch. Grand-Puy-Lacoste and this one of the stand out wines of the vintage. Very pure and focused blackcurrant cassis fruit appears on the nose, with lighter redcurrant and cherry notes mixed with cigar box and lead pencil. A linear quality is found on the palate with some serious tannins and weight for the year. There is a creamy sweetness too, but all the while the elegance and poise of Grand-Puy-Lacoste stands out.
Hong Kong Fine Wine Team

Ch. Grand-Puy-Lacoste has been in excellent form over the last few years and the 2008 continues in this impressive vein. This boasts the generous fruit of the vintage but with a classic, Pauillac seam running right through the core. Once again feminine in style, this is stylish and elegant with crisp acidity and fine-grained but structured tannins; this represents excellent value in 2008.

My second placed wine, and also second in the Pauillac flight behind Ch. Pichon-Baron. Lightness of touch here. Cleanly made but with traditional restraint – nothing pushed. Cedary and savoury, with freshness and detail on the finish. Real style and breed. Fantastically drinkable. I can’t stress enough what a bargain this is – it is absurdly cheap for those people that want to drink proper Bordeaux in 6 or 7 years’ time.
Philip Moulin, Fine Wine Buyer

Pretty close to the top of my list of personal buys from the vintage. Fabulous intensity, purity and complexity combination, all lying within a dense red fruit core that seems endless on the finish. Xavier, I don’t know quite know what you have done over the last few vintages but please keep it up. A cellar must have!
Simon Staples - Sales Director, Asia

Francois Xavier Borie is now producing some of Bordeaux's greatest wines, expressing the personality of the terroir possibly more than any other proprietor. A fabulous wine balancing concentration, ripeness of fruit and complex structure all in one. One of the finest wines of the vintage.

A fabulously intense, fruit driven nose, with wave after wave of all the typical Pauillac nuances, leads to notes of pencil and tobacco. It is powerful and rich on the palate with a cool, sensual core of precise blackberry fruit. Xavier Borie’s 2009 was one of the wines of the vintage for us and he’s given us a double whammy here, with possibly an even finer example with his incredible 2010.
Simon Staples, Fine Wine Director

This is a real return to form for Grand Puy Lacoste, with owner François Xavier Borie rightfully very proud of his Grand Vin in 2005. Made with more Cabernet Sauvignon than usual (78%) this has a gently toasty cassis nose, followed by elegant blackberry and dark cherry fruit with licorice hints and good freshness. It is far more feminine than the Lynch Bages and also the Pontet Canet, yet retains lots of energy and weight along with perfect balance. This may not be a powerhouse but it is one of the very finest wines in Pauillac, and indeed the whole of Bordeaux.

Intense in both the glass and the mouth, this is another super 2014 wine. There is underlying power here, velvety, ripe tannins and notes of a savoury nature, perhaps even cedar. Very pure fruit, cassis, plum and dark cherry stick out, along with a juicy dollop of vanilla cream. Heavenly spice comes through on the long finish. The wine is utterly sumptuous and effortlessly persistent. Classically elegant, this is a wine of real pedigree. It is truly drinkable and approachable at an early age and could be one of the real bargains of the vintage.

82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot

Ch. Grand-Puy-Lacoste is an exceptional wine in 2009. Elegant, concentrated yet fresh, this has a delicious basket of red and black fruit flavours and wonderful mineral precision. Sweet ripe tannins and a long, persistent savoury finish dominate the palate. Absolutely charming, this could be one of the best buys of the vintage. Sensational.
Simon Staples, Sales & Marketing Director

Just like the excellent 2006, the calling card of Grand Puy Lacoste's 2007 is balance, purity and finesse. It is more supple and approachable than last year, however, and should certainly be opened before your 2006 or 2005. It has an attractive blackberry and raspberry nose followed by a stylish palate with velvety yet linear black cherry fruit and cedar hints. The epitome of top-class Pauillac, this is another very polished Grand Puy Lacoste from the charming François-Xavier Borie.

As the beaming François-Xavier Borie reminisced about welcoming an unknown wine writer called Robert Parker to his estate in 1978 (yes, he was unknown once) we thoroughly enjoyed his extremely stylish 2006. Focused red fruit on the nose is followed by a concentrated and silky palate in perfect harmony and balance. With more Cabernet Franc than usual in the blend, there is a sweetness and minty edge to the red and black fruit and a suppleness to the tannins that is all too rare in 2006. This continues the return to form of the 2005 in fine fashion.

Such is the demand for the collectors’ vintages of 2009 and 2010 that prices for Cru Classé Bordeaux have become somewhat prohibitive. One way around this problem is to look for the ‘in-between’ vintages of the last decade. 2002 is the perfect example of just such a year – unloved by American critics, and released at a moment of strong anti-French sentiment in the U.S. (the start of the second Iraq war), the prices have never been an accurate reflection of their quality. Grand-Puy-Lacoste is the thinking man’s Pauillac, and for them, the most perfect expression of the commune. Notes of cigar boxes, leather chairs and crystalline blackcurrant fruit are the hallmark of the château, along with the most remarkable balance of fruit versus structure. Decant an hour or two before serving, and make sure you are not sitting too far away from said vessel when it’s time for a second glass.
Philip Mouilin - Private Account Manager

Tasting François-Xavier Borie’s wines is always a highlight, as the property is now producing some of the most attractive wines in the Médoc. The 2016 Grand-Puy-Lacoste is delicate and charming with an attractive nose of cassis, blackcurrant and dark fruit. The overall fruit quality is outstanding. It’s suave and generous on the palate, with fresh black fruit and a rich fleshy texture. The long finish continues for several seconds.

Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon 79%, Merlot 21%

This case includes:

4 x 75cl Ch. Grand-Puy-Lacoste
2 x 150cl Ch. Grand-Puy-Lacoste
1 x 300cl Ch. Grand-Puy-Lacoste