Le Pin 2022 (750ML)

99-100 JS / 97-99+ WI / 96-99 WA / 96-98 VM / 97 DE / 97 DE / 95-97 JD

Such is the ripeness and richness of the vintage but the wine remains so fresh and balanced. Medium-bodied with subtle and juicy tannins. It's a little fuller-bodied than the perfect 2020 but it is just as weightless and gorgeous. Cashmere texture throughout. Only 65% new wood. - James Suckling

The 2022 Le Pin, 100% Merlot with a yield of 29 hl/ha and aging in 65% new oak, is deep garnet-purple in color. It gallops out with bold, expressive scents of baked black plums, black raspberries, and juicy blackberries, leading to suggestions of cinnamon toast, violets, menthol, and cedar chest with a waft of garrigue. The full-bodied palate is generously laden with layers of black fruits and earthy accents, framed by firm yet velvety tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and spicy. This is so seductive. pH 3.77. - Lisa Perotti-Brown, Wine Independent

The elegance and harmony of the 2022 Le Pin took me aback. Harvest began at this small estate on September 6th, proceeding bit by bit until all 10 blocks were picked, and the resulting wine is maturing in 65% new oak. Wafting from the glass with aromas of minty blackberries and cassis mingled with hints of licorice, spices and rose petals, it's medium to full-bodied, bright and fleshy, with a sensual, seamless profile and terrific integration at such an early stage. It's one of the finest vintages at this address in the last decade or more. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

The 2022 Le Pin was picked 6 to 17 September at 29hL/ha, pure Merlot as usual matured in 65% new oak. It has a quasiBurgundian bouquet, extremely pure and floral, fleeting glimpses of blueberry and blackcurrant, very perfumed in style. The palate is mediumbodied with a concentrated, verging on viscous opening that delivers a payload of gorgeous, mineral-rich black fruit. Wonderful balance, velvety in texture, it leans toward a more opulent Le Pin. This disguises the backbone of this wine that should ensure it matures over many years. Seriously fine, though I would take Jacques Thienpont's comparison to the 1945 or 1947 Le Pin with a big pinch of salt. -- Neal Martin, Vinous Media

Concentrated fruit, ripe blackcurrants and soft bramble touches with delicate perfumed aromas on the nose. Smooth and supple, more straight and sleek than the nose suggests with an appealing hit of mouthwatering acidity on the mid palate giving life and energy balanced by an intense saline minerality that gives edges to the firm tannins. This opens after a few minutes, becoming more expressive and complex adding graphite, cocoa, liquorice, flint, floral touches and succulent red fruits to the mix. Poised, happy, joyful, captivating and lively. Very impressive. Doesn't quite carry the weight of others but this is stunning with a lightness of touch and extreme polish. 3.77pH. 3.0g/L total acidity. Ageing in barrels, 65% new, 35% one wine. Harvest 6 - 17 September. A yield of 29hl/ha. - GH, Decanter

Delivers the plush texture of Le Pin, with rippling cassis and blueberry fruits, bitter slabs of chocolate, slate, crushed rocks. The extreme ripeness of the year seems effortless at a property that knows how to capture your attention, and how to draw velvety tannins around intensely spiced fruits. A slow build through the palate, need to take your time to explores the depths of this wine, give it time. Expertly structured and intense. Harvest September 6 to 17, here yield 29hl/h, 3.77ph, 65% new oak. Potential upscore in bottle. - Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux 

As always, the 2022 Château Le Pin is 100% Merlot, but the amount of new oak has been pulled back substantially in the past few vintages, and the 2022 is still resting in just 65% new oak. This Burgundian styled Merlot reveals a healthy ruby/purple hue as well as a beautiful bouquet of spiced red and black fruits, background oak, dried flowers, and loamy earth. Medium to full-bodied, restrained, incredibly elegant, and balanced, with fine tannins, it's another remarkable, singular wine from this château. - Jeb Dunnuck