1996 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron- France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac (7/22/2011)
Decanted 2 hrs. Aromas of cedar and tobacco abound, along with a slight touch of funk that oddly wasn’t out of place at all. A classic claret in the sense of its cassis tinted fruit was really more of a back drop to the more pronounced earthy flavors, very precise and smooth texture, and along enough in the finish to evoke aristocratic thoughts, especially considering what current 2nd growth Bordeaux goes for these days. Still, it left me a bid in the cold, a very good wine, nothing I could pick apart, but simply lacked that quality that awakens my emotional interest when sipping a good wine. (91 pts.)
Perhaps Dave, it certianly was in zero danger of falling of a cliif or the like, perhaps another 5 years could add a little charm that it seemed to be lacking, but make no mistake it was perfectly correct in all its proportions and make up. Cheers.
I agree with this. I tasted this most recently last August, and it was not really giving up much but the underlying quality of material was obvious. Prior to that I tasted it in Nov. '06 and it was really rocking. Both bottles were from the same case… I’m pretty confident it’s just in a dumb phase and is going to come out singing in 5 years.