Léoville Las Cases 2015

Tasted blind. Dark crimson. Bonfire char on the top. Then very smooth, sweet and beguiling. Easy to appreciate. No heat. Early developer, though there is no shortage of tannin here!Drink 2023-2042

A legendary wine in the making from the Delon Family is the 2015 Leoville Las Cases and there are very few wines more impressive in the vintage. A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Merlot, this full-bodied, tight, super-concentrated, focused 2015 boasts an awesome bouquet of crème de cassis, graphite, charcoal, lead pencil, and minerality. Deep, layered, with perfect ripeness and building tannin, hide bottle for 6-7 years and enjoy this prodigious effort over the following 3-4 decades. 2024 - 2064

Brooding depth the nose is sweet the start of the palate has the richness of ripe fruit. Chocolate and liquorice in the middle add to the richness but there is underlying bilberry freshness layers of flavour lots of complexity. The finish is long bright and elegant.

Two records set here: the highest ever percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon and the highest alcohol level at 13.8! This is a ripe style, but has the classic Las-Cases backbone, with cassis and fruitcake notes, fine tannins and excellent oak integration. Drink: 2023-32

This is the highest ever alcohol levels at Las Cases (mainly because Cabernet was harvested at 13.5%) and also the highest combined Cabernet percentage ever of 94%. Pierre Graffeuille, commercial director, explained that less and less Merlot will be used here in the future because of global warming. I had to take a deep breath several times while tasting this wine because it not only possesses extraordinary intensity balanced with extraordinary weightlessness but the sheer style and panache here is shocking. Utterly sublime in every way this is a tour de force for Las Cases. The tannins are immense but also fit and lithe and there is, once again, the dramatic spiciness from the July heat spike which seems to joust with the ultra-fine tannins coming from the stunningly ripe skins. The aroma alone is worth the entry fee. Thisis a truly great wine.

Bottled in July 2017, the 2015 Leoville-Las Cases is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc and 6% Merlot cropped at 39 hectoliters per hectare. It has an arresting bouquet, very intense with blackberry, blueberry and oyster shell aromas, becoming more floral with aeration with hints of crushed violet developing. This is quite a “punchy” bouquet that demands your attention. The palate is medium-bodied with svelte tannin, a fine line of acidity, very impressive tension and an involving, mineral-driven finish (you can feel the tongue tingling after the wine has departed). It will require at least a decade in bottle, but it will be worth the wait. Anticipated maturity: 2025 - 2050.

The 2015 Leoville Las-Cases has the highest Cabernet contents in recent years, 85% and 9% of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc respectively, partly because some of the old Merlot vines were blended into the deuxième vin. Picked between 22 September and 9 October, a total of 15 days picking, it will be matured in 85% new oak. The alcohol level is 13.8%, higher than 2010 for example. Jean-Hubert Delon has crafted an extremely pure and tensile bouquet, almost pixelated with blackberry, briary, slate and oyster shell aromas that blossom in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied, svelte and sensual on the entry, the tannins a little edgy with a gentle crescendo: black fruit, tons of minerals, real focus and precision towards the finish. This is a superlative Léoville Las-Cases with the substance to suggest long-term aging will be repaid. Drink: 2028 - 2070.

This is an ethereal young wine with blackberry and violet aromas and flavors. Full body, very firm and silky tannins and a superb finish. Lovely length and purity to this. 85% cabernet sauvignon, 6% merlot and 9% cabernet franc.

Composed of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc and 6% Merlot, the medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2015 Léoville Las Cases has a slightly closed nose, revealing notes of crème de cassis, baked blueberries and black forest cake with touches of licorice, violets and Indian spices plus a waft of dusty soil. The palate is medium to full-bodied, concentrated and built like a brick house, with firm, ripe, velvety tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and spicy. Drink 2025-2050.

More voluptuous nose than some earlier vintages. Bone-dry finish. Pretty concentrated and with some richness. Solid and mineral but not (quite) as obdurate as it used to be. Fruit and ink combo. Minerals like Pauillac on the end. Grabs the attention. 13.85%Drink 2027-2040