2023 Château Saint-Pierre, St Julien, Bordeaux
Critics reviews
Enjoyable, well balanced, great inky depths of flavour, an enjoyable, sleek and confident St Julien, with an effortless finesse where you feel they aren't trying too hard to impress, just harnessing the drinkability of the vintage with its black fruit and liquorice character. Give it a few years, then sink into the pleasure of this wine. 45hl/ha yield, third year of organic conversion.
Drink 2029 - 2040
Jane Anson, JaneAnson.com (April 2024)
The 2023 Saint-Pierre contains no Cabernet Franc and it will not be blended into the Grand Vin henceforth. This has a bit more animation and vigor than the Gloria, precise and fresh with plenty of black fruit and a lovely graphite note underneath. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins but there is clearly more concentration compared to the Gloria (this was actually done partly in the winery). A touch of soy towards the finish completes an attractive Saint-Pierre.
Drink 2028 - 2048
Neal Martin, Vinous.com (April 2024)
The 2023 Saint-Pierre (Saint-Julien) is packed with blackberry jam, gravel, lavender, dried herbs, spice and crushed rocks. There’s a ton of character here. Incisive tannins and bright acids pull it all together in style. Give this at least a few years to soften. Tasted two times.
Drink 2030 - 2045
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (April 2024)
The 2023 Saint-Pierre is deep garnet-purple in color. It is quite closed to start, needing considerable swirling to bring out notes of fresh black and red currants, licorice, and charcoal, plus hints of dried roses and fallen leaves. The medium-bodied palate is tightly knit, with bright black and red berry flavors and fine-grained tannins, finishing fragrant. Very pretty!
Drink 2028 - 2042
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent (May 2024)
80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 3% Petit Verdot. Cask sample.
Layered fruit with a suave texture of tannin. Tight and firm in frame. Oak tannins on the finish. Has all the components but needs to settle and integrate.
Drink 2030 - 2042
James Lawther MW, JancisRobinson.com (April 2024)
A strong effort, the 2023 Saint-Pierre unwinds in the glass with aromas of cassis, dark berries and incense, framed by a deft touch of new oak. Medium to full-bodied, rich and layered, with good mid-palate density, powdery tannins and lively acids, it's a classically proportioned Saint-Julien that will age with grace. The blend is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 3% Petit Verdot.
William Kelley, Wine Advocate (April 2024)
This has a super-refined and silky tannin structure. Tastes pure and pristine, with notes of blackberries, violets and a touch of chocolate. Medium-bodied with a firm finish.
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (April 2024)
I continue to love this château, and they've done well their 2023 Château Saint-Pierre (Saint-Julien), a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot, aging in 50% new oak. Red and black fruits, leafy herbs, iron, chocolate, and a kiss of background oak all emerge on the nose, and it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a pure, layered, elegant mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and outstanding length. It has the fresher, juicy style of the vintage but brings ample fruit and texture.
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com (May 2024)
About this WINE
Château Saint-Pierre
Château Saint-Pierre is the smallest Classified Growth in St Julien. It was ranked a Fourth Growth in 1855, but over the next century it was broken up into smaller and smaller parts. It was restored to its original holdings in 1982 by then-owner Henri Martin, proprietor of nearby Château Gloria. Today, his legacy lives on through his son-in-law Jean-Louis Triaud, and Jean-Louis’s own children.
The elegant château building looks rather classic, but it belies a surprisingly modern approach behind the scenes. Infrared photography of the vineyard allows the team to carefully plan out harvesting schedules to the level of the individual plant. This 17-hectare estate is undergoing organic conversion and holds HVE-3 certification. Viticulture follows a bespoke mix of techniques picked up from organics and biodynamics, which Jean-Louis calls “our own system”.
There have been advances in the winery, too. Instead of pumping-over once in the morning and once in the afternoon, there are small pump-overs at hourly intervals, working around the clock. Amphorae are already a fixture of the cellar, and Jean-Louis hopes to reach a 50-50 balance between amphorae and the more traditional new French oak barriques.
St Julien
St Julien is the smallest of the "Big Four" Médoc communes. Although, without any First Growths, St Julien is recognised to be the most consistent of the main communes, with several châteaux turning out impressive wines year after year.
St Julien itself is much more of a village than Pauillac and almost all of the notable properties lie to its south. Its most northerly château is Ch. Léoville Las Cases (whose vineyards actually adjoin those of Latour in Pauillac) but, further south, suitable vineyard land gives way to arable farming and livestock until the Margaux appellation is reached.
The soil is gravelly and finer than that of Pauillac, and without the iron content which gives Pauillac its stature. The homogeneous soils in the vineyards (which extend over a relatively small area of just over 700 hectares) give the commune a unified character.
The wines can be assessed as much by texture as flavour, and there is a sleek, wholesome character to the best. Elegance, harmony and perfect balance and weight, with hints of cassis and cedar, are what epitomise classic St Julien wines. At their very best they combine Margaux’s elegance and refinement with Pauillac’s power and substance.
Ch. Léoville Las Cases produces arguably the most sought-after St Julien, and in any reassessment of the 1855 Classification it would almost certainly warrant being elevated to First Growth status.
Recommended Châteaux: Ch. Léoville Las Cases, Ch.Léoville Barton, Ch Léoville Poyferré, Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou, Ch Langoa Barton, Ch Gruaud Larose, Ch. Branaire-Ducru, Ch. Beychevelle
Cabernet Sauvignon blend
Cabernet Sauvignon lends itself particularly well in blends with Merlot. This is actually the archetypal Bordeaux blend, though in different proportions in the sub-regions and sometimes topped up with Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.
In the Médoc and Graves the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend can range from 95% (Mouton-Rothschild) to as low as 40%. It is particularly suited to the dry, warm, free- draining, gravel-rich soils and is responsible for the redolent cassis characteristics as well as the depth of colour, tannic structure and pronounced acidity of Médoc wines. However 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wines can be slightly hollow-tasting in the middle palate and Merlot with its generous, fleshy fruit flavours acts as a perfect foil by filling in this cavity.
In St-Emilion and Pomerol, the blends are Merlot dominated as Cabernet Sauvignon can struggle to ripen there - when it is included, it adds structure and body to the wine. Sassicaia is the most famous Bordeaux blend in Italy and has spawned many imitations, whereby the blend is now firmly established in the New World and particularly in California and Australia.
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Description
Blend: 80% Cabernet Sauvignon; 17% Merlot; 3% Petit Verdot.
Although not generally considered in the top echelon of the St Julien commune, St Pierre is always worth a look. It can sometimes appear a little solid against some of its more flamboyant peers, but what it does, it does very well. There is a fine sense of purity in the 2023, with acidity, tannin and fruit all happily poised. The palate could perhaps do with a little more light and shade but it is hard to shake the sense that everything here is reassuringly correct and in place.
Drink 2029 - 2042
Our score: 16/20
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