Château Pichon Comtesse de Lalande, 2ème Cru Classé, Pauillac, 2025
Nicolas Glumineau's Pichon Comtesse is always one of the more radiant and expressive wines from the Medoc. Opening with an exuberant bouquet of violets, sweet tobacco, alluring griotte and flecks of graphite, it segues to a finely-polished palate of seductive cassis, redcurrant and delicate sandalwood. This is poised and controlled, a sculpted, lifted Pauillac full of class and refinement. We love the textural fruit, deep and full of energy, seamless, framed by beautifully judged tannins, which are round and succulent leaving the palate cleansed with pure cassis and licorice, and finishing with salinity and refreshing acidity. Excellent.
critic reviews
The 2025 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande was picked from August 28, the earliest ever, finishing on September 23, matured in 66% new oak, the rest one-year-old. It has a taut and linear nose, very classic in style, graphite/pencil lead scents that permeate the black fruit. Beautiful delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with filigree tannins. A little more structured and austere than the more Merlot-driven vintages of old. Yet as it unfurls in the glass, it reveals the level of sophistication and precision you now come to expect from this Pauillac Second Growth. At 13.1% alcohol, this is lower than other recent vintages.
Expands through the palate from beginning to end, raspberry puree, blackberry, loganberry, crushed rocks and bitter black chocolate, wrapped up in smoky coffee beans. Excellent build and architecture, has tension and grip, with a mouthwatering finish, and delivers a joyful expression of the vintage. 73 IPT. Cabernet Sauvignon only for the press wine. Harvest began August 28 (earliest on record) until September 24. 52% 1st wine, 48% Réserve. 3.7 pH. Harvest August 28 to September 24.
The 2025 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is showing well, opening in the glass with notes of cassis, blackberries, cigar wrapper and iris, becoming more fragrant with aeration. Medium- to full-bodied, deep and layered, with plenty of powdery tannin that asserts itself on the youthfully structured finish, it's a blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc.