Leoville Poyferre 2021 (6.0L)

94-97 JD / 95-96 JS / 95 JA / 95 DE / 93-95 VM / 93-94+ WA / 92-94 WI

The top wine, the 2021 Château Léoville Poyferré is a beauty and certainly makes the most of the vintage. Based on 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot that hit 14% alcohol (with an IPT of 78 and a pH of 3.85), its dense purple hue is followed by a rich, concentrated, medium to full-bodied Saint-Julien that has terrific purity of fruit, notes of cassis, violets, and spicy wood, ripe tannins, and remarkable overall balance. It brings more richness and depth than most in the vintage and is unquestionably going to offer tons of pleasure over the coming 20-25 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

This is very typical for St.-Julien with violets, berries, blackcurrants and crushed stone. Medium to full body with very fine tannins that run the length of the wine. Powdery tannins and a rich finish. Velvety texture. 60% cabernet sauvignon, 26% merlot, 9% cabernet franc and 5% petit verdot. - James Suckling

Enjoyably supple texture, silky and juicy with blueberry, raspberry, blackberry and redcurrant fruit, along with liqourice, fennel and a touch of cocoa bean. This is a serious Poyferré with a firm tannic structure and clear ageing potential, more austere at this stage than you often find. Michel Rolland consultant, 45% new oak, 45% 1st wine, 24hl/h yield. Harvest September 28 to October 12. - Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

Beautifully fragranced on the nose - floral-edged ripe bramble fruits. Nicely detailed and presents, despite a clear youthful tannic structure this has layers of flavour with ripe and sweet fruit nuances balanced by a mineral grip, salty touches and cool fresh mint leaf notes. It's more of a contemplative wine, needing a few minutes and several tastes for the flavours to expand in the mouth, gaining in density yet keeping a lightness of touch and refinement. Such finesse going on here. The austerity is balanced with the ripe fruits so you're getting so many elements at play at once. This is complex and sensuous, you have the precise defined and well-worked fruit, so clear with poise, then the tannic strength though fine texture and a long, lifted finish. This has real class, and such estate signature with dark sweet liquorice touches at the end too. Really very captivating and a success. 5% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Julien Viaud consultant. Tasted twice. 3.84pH. Ageing 18 to 20 months in oak barrels, 80% new, 20% one year. - Georgina Hindle, Decanter

The 2021 Léoville-Poyferré is classy and polished right out of the gate. All the classic Poyferré signatures come through, but in miniature. The 2021 impresses with its pliant fruit, silky tannins and fine balance. To be sure, the 2021 is a smaller-scaled wine than the norm here over the last few years, but that is the charm of this vintage. Inky dark fruit, pencil shavings, licorice and menthol build into the super-expressive finish. Tasted three times - Antonio Gallino, Vinous Media

The 2021 Léoville Poyferré shows considerable promise, wafting from the glass with aromas of sweet berries and plums mingled with spices, licorice and petals, framed by a deft touch of creamy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, supple and fleshy, it's a polished, charming wine with a pretty core of fruit, lively acids and ripe, powdery tannins, concluding with a penetrating finish. It's a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2021 Leoville Poyferre slowly expands from the glass, revealing notes of warm cassis, blackberry pie, and black cherry preserves, followed by hints of menthol, pencil lead, red roses, and charcoal. Medium-bodied, the palate offers great intensity of youthful black fruits with firm, fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing long and peppery. The blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot, harvested between 28 September and 12 October, is to be aged 18-20 months in French oak, 80% new. The wine has a pH of 3.84 and an IPT of 78. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent