2015 Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste Pauillac Bordeaux France Wine Tasting Note
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2015
Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste (Pauillac)
Tobacco leaf, cedar chest, flowers, plums, smoke, cigar box, and cassis create the nose. On the palate, the wine is rich, fresh, fruity, ripe, and generous. Full-bodied, long, and loaded with everything great about Pauillac and GPL, the finish is all about the creamy-textured, tobacco-tinted red fruits that really hang with you. Drink from 2026-2055. 7,830 Views Tasted Jul 8, 2022You can already sense the development of the smoke, truffle, tobacco, pencil lead and cedar in the nose. The wine is soft in texture, full bodied, fresh, lively, and sweet. There is a lot of fruit, and tannin to match, along with the structure and substance to age for decades. With 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc in the blend, this is the first vintage since 2009 in which the estate added Cabernet Franc to the blend. 8,383 Views Tasted May 21, 2018A strong showing provided all the tobacco, earth, cedar and bright, dark red fruits one could ask for. Full bodied, focused and with a great Pauillac charm, this is a really wine. 7,114 Views Tasted Jul 12, 2017In the nose this wine summons iron, cassis, tobacco and cedar. On the palate it is full-bodied and concentrated, offering layers of luscious, ripe, cassis, blackberry, pepper and ripe tannin. Give it time and it will come together. With 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc in the blend, this is the first vintage since 2009 in which the estate added Cabernet Franc to the mix. This wine reached 13.5% ABV with a pH of 3.68, representing 62% of the harvest. Just in case you have not been following, Grand Puy Lacoste has really been on a roll, producing a sting of great wines and releasing them for prices that are more than fair to wine loving consumers. Here’s a little insiders tip for you… I know more than one director and owner that always adds Grand Puy Lacoste to their cellars. 93 – 95 Pts 14,807 Views Tasted Apr 18, 2016 |
When to Drink Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time
Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste needs time in the cellar before it is ready to drink. Young vintages can be decanted for at least 2-4 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 Grand Puy Lacoste is usually better with at least 12-20 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste should offer its best drinking and reach peak maturity between 12-35 years of age after the vintage.
Serving Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste with Wine and Food Pairings
Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.
Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste is best paired with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste is also good when matched with Asian dishes, rich fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, pasta and a myriad of hard and soft cheeses.
Grand Puy Lacoste is a classic, age-worthy, style of Pauillac. It's a full-bodied, tannic, concentrated Bordeaux wine that ages well. This Bordeaux wine offers cassis, cedar, tobacco, and truffle scents and a juicy mouth full of flavor
Interestingly, the wine became one of the first popular, non First Growth Bordeaux brands to sell in China and in other countries in Asia as well.
In part, their initial success in China had to do with the last word for the name of the chateau, Lacoste. The name Lacoste gave a memorable nickname to Grand Puy Lacoste, which was soon called the alligator wine in China, due to the name being the same as the famous sports clothing designer, with the crocodile logo.
The wine of Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste has not always been consistent. But clearly, in some vintages, like 1982 and 1990, the wine can be as good as the Super Seconds. However, the estate has really been on a roll starting with the 2000 vintage. 2009, followed by an even better 2010 Grand Puy Lacoste are really great wines. In fact, those 2 years could be the two best vintages ever produced at Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste!
If you ever get the chance to visit this beautiful property do not miss the stunning gardens, a lake with swans, and greenery behind the house. And be sure to ask about the 2 full-sized, plastic cows near the lake.