Chateau Le Pin - Le Pin - Ex Chateau 2024

WEINWISSER: "100 % Merlot, 29 hl/ha, Alkohol 13 vol%, 65 % neue Barriques. Unglaublich tiefgründiges würziges Bouquet, „Haschkekse“, heller Tabak, Wildkirsche und Black Currant. Am komplexen Gaumen mit samtiger Textur, engmaschigem Tanningerüst, unglaublichem Zug, bleibt sich wie immer treu. Im konzentrierten, nicht enden wollenden Finale schwarzbeerige Konturen, Kardamom und royale Adstringenz."

VINUM: "Mittleres Rubinrot; merklich vom Holz geprägte Nase, feine Würzigkeit, nussige Noten, Tabak, Mokka, Milchschokolade, darüber florale Noten, grosse Komplexität; saftiger Gaumen, hochelegant, weniger dicht als 2022, dafür mit einem Terroir-Ausdruck der schöner nicht sein könnte, knackige, rote Beeren, seidige Tannine die vom Anfang bis zum Ende unterstützen, stets präsent sind, nie dominieren, grossartige Säure, sehr langes Finale. Ausgezeichnet."

FALSTAFF: "Kräftiges Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Feine Nuancen von eingelegten roten Kirschen, ein Hauch von Gewürzen, zart nach Ribisel, tabakig, ein Hauch von Edelholz, filigranes Bukett. Saftig, elegant, süße Textur, reife Kirschen, reife Tannine, mineralisch und balanciert, bereits sehr verführerisch, verfügt über Charme und großes Trinkanimo. "

JAMES SUCKLING: "This is like the amazing 1994 (a unicorn of the vintage) or the 1990, but more modern and precise. Medium-bodied with a fine, compacted texture, this shows green-olive tapenade and cedar. The tannins are so refined, running the length of the wine. In the 1980s, they used to say this was Burgundy- or pinot-like. It is, and in such a good way. Brings a nice smile to my face. Pure merlot. Only 13 barrels made."

LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: "Deep garnet-purple colored. Erupts from the glass with powerful notes of red currant jelly, fresh blackberries, and Morello cherries, followed by hints of iris, tar, wild sage, and iron ore. The medium-bodied palate is filled with evocative red and black berry flavors, supported by firm, rounded tannins and seamless freshness, finishing on a lingering ferrous note."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Black raspberries, mint, flowers, licorice, spice, espresso, and cherries produce the aromatic profile. One of the most sensuous wines of the vintage, the wine is elegant, slightly firm, and vibrant, with supple-textured black cherries, plums, cocoa, and black raspberries along with accents of spice, and sea-salt in the finish. The sense of purity is already expressive on the palate, and in the finish. Produced from 100% Merlot, 13% ABV, 3.72 pH, the harvest took place September 20-September 29, in four stages. Yields were only 29 hectoliters per hectare, making production quite small this year, with roughly 350 cases produced. Drink from 2029-2044."

ANSON: "Vivid ruby plum, and here the fragrance is centred around dark fruits, cassis, bilberry, rose petals. Love the density and the texture, and the slow slow build. A more serious Le Pin than some years, exceptional quality in the vintage, and will age with finesse. The retro olfaction comes curling in with gunsmoke and graphite. The deep gravels of Le Pin came into play for sure in this vintage, helping reach these ripeness levels, and this is a potential upscore in bottle. 65% new oak, harvest 20 to 29 September. 3.72pH, 29 hl/ha."

DECANTER: "Fresh and floral, really lifted aromatics - pure and so perfumed but really focused on roses and wild strawberries with touches of bitter orange. Clean and succulent, a bite of minerality and iodine, pencil lead minerality almost straight away. A little tense and serious, but beautifully delineated. Really feel the terroir in the wine, blood and lots of iron. This shows a real honest purity, nothing hidden. Succulent and softly juicy, this is more on the terroir nuances than brightness but there’s a confidence no doubt. Ageing 65% new barrels. 3.72pH."

JEB DUNNUCK: "Coming from an early-ripening, well-drained site planted entirely to Merlot, the 2024 Château Le Pin is still resting in two-thirds new oak, a percentage that has been gradually reduced since 2019. Ripe red and black berries, sappy spring flowers, tobacco, and exotic notes of gravelly earth and silex all emerge from the glass. This is a ripe, medium-bodied Le Pin with ultra-fine tannins, a soft, supple, layered mouthfeel, and outstanding length. It's going to offer plenty of upfront appeal yet has the balance and depth to evolve beautifully in bottle."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The 2024 Le Pin is showing nicely, offering up aromas of sweet red berries, orange marmalade, cigar box and loamy soil, followed by a medium to full-bodied, sweet and fleshy palate that's layered and expressive, with a sweet core of fruit and an aromatic finish. This attained 13% alcohol without chaptalization and is being matured in 65% new oak."