1961 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron Pauillac Bordeaux France Wine Tasting Note
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1961
Château Pichon-Longueville Baron (Pauillac)
It has been 6 years since I last tasted this wine, and it hasn't skipped a beat, or lost any of its charm. The bottle has great provenance. I bought it from the original purchaser and it shows. Full bodied, concentrated and deep, the perfume, with all its tobacco, smoke, cigar wrapper, cedar, coffee bean, forest floor, smoke and cassis grabs you and keeps you. The fruit carries through to the finish with bright, red berry, spicy, tobacco-infused note that sticks with you for close to 50 seconds. At close to 60 years of age, this is just sublime! 4,086 Views Tasted May 31, 2018Tobacco, truffle, cassis, earth, smoke, cedar, lead pencil, forest floor and spice aromas produced a complex perfume. Fully mature, the wine ended with a rich, full bodied, sturdy sensation of spice, earth and cassis. It's always a treat to taste wines that have hit the half century mark. At 50 years of age, when a well stored bottle can deliver the goods, that says a lot about the wine. Large formats of this wine should be even better! 4,658 Views Tasted Jan 2, 2012Brick hued and very aromatic with huge doses of cassis and earth notes. This powerful, fully mature Pauillac kept improving in the glass for almost 2 hours before peaking and gently sliding downhill 3,325 Views Tasted Nov 12, 2006 |
When to Drink Chateau Pichon Baron, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time
Chateau Pichon Baron is not a wine to drink on the young side. The wine is usually far too tannic, powerful, and backward during its youth. Young vintages can be decanted for an average of 3-6 hours, give or take. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment.
Chateau Pichon Baron is usually better with at least 15 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. Chateau Pichon Baron offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 15 and 50 years of age after the vintage.
Serving Chateau Pichon Baron with Wine and Food Pairings
Chateau Pichon Baron is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.
Chateau Pichon Baron is best paired with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau Pichon Baron is also good when matched with Asian dishes, and rich fish courses like tuna, salmon, mushrooms and pasta.
The estate made two changes starting with the 2012 vintage. Consumers are now able to go to the website for the chateau and use the visual recognition system that is now placed on the bottles on both on the capsule and back label.
Each capsule and back label has a unique code they can enter into the website to show if their bottle is authentic and the consumer can also know where the wine was initially sold, as a way to guarantee its authenticity. It's a step in the right direction that helps fight wine fraud and counterfeiting.
Additionally, the same technical team that is responsible for Chateau Pichon Baron produces Cap Royal. A quick glance at the label will remind you of the relationship. Cap Royal is available as a Merlot-dominated wine from Bordeaux Superieur.
Cap Royal is also available as a white Bordeaux wine made from 100% Sauvignon Blanc. Cap Royal is a true value Bordeaux wine. Interestingly, Cap Royal is a certified vegan wine.