In our recently concluded Pichon Baron tasting, The Orlando Friends Tasting Group sought to have as many common vintages as possible with our previous Pichon Comtesse tasting in order to allow for meaningful cross-estate comparisons.
The table below shows the wines included in the Baron tasting with the associated varietal composition of the Baron wines, as well as the Comtesse wines for shared vintages. As shown in the table, there were Baron-Comtesse overlaps in eight of the tasted vintages (varietal composition for Comtesse wines are shown in parentheses). The varietal composition of the Baron 1975 vintage could not be determined.
Year | Cabernet Sauvignon (%) | Merlot (%) | Petit Verdot (%) | Cabernet Franc (%) |
2008 | 71 | 29 | ||
2005 | 64 | 33 | 3 | |
2003 | 65 (65) | 35 (31) | (4) | |
2002 | 65 (51) | 35 (34) | (6) | (9) |
2000 | 70 | 25 | ||
1998 | 80 (55) | 20 (30) | (15) | |
1996 | 80 (75) | 20 (15) | (5) | (5) |
1995 | 65 (45) | 35 (40) | (15) | |
1990 | 63 | 37 | ||
1989 | 73 (45) | 27 (35) | (8) | (12) |
1988 | 70 (45) | 30 (35) | (8) | (12) |
1975 | (45) | (35) | (8) | (12) |
Sean's notes being the most comprehensive and complete over the two tastings, therefore his material was used as the basis for the comparisons.
The 2003 Vintage
A heat wave was the defining hallmark of the vintage. Early bud break and flowering. Undeniably a quality harvest. Very favorable weather conditions enabled attainment of optimal ripeness. Both estates used a similar Cabernet Sauvignon composition but while Pichon rounded out the blend with 35% Merlot, Comtesse rounded out its blend with 31% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot. As we have learned from the Comtesse tasting, Petit Verdot adds color, complex spicy and floral aromas, and highly concentrated tannins. The Pichon Baron was aged for 15 months in 70% new oak barrels, remainder first passage.
Sean saw the Baron as exhibiting leather, something green, and a slight herbal note on the nose. Slight smoke. On the palate, more acid, tannic, and stronger. Black currant. Dark cherry, raspberry. In the case of the Comtesse, we see aspects of the Petit Verdot showing through. According to Sean: Floral nose, more violets and roses. Slight smoke. Sous bois. Dark fruits and a good, longer finish. Graphite and lead pencil typical of Pauillac. Good, but slightly off perhaps.
The 1998 Vintage
Flowering took place in normal conditions and a dull July was followed by a hot, dry August which thickened the skins, which were then able to resist the rains that fell in early September. White grapes were harvested in mid-September, followed by Merlot, which was often of high quality. Cabernet was more problematical, as not all of the bunches were fully ripe by the time rot appeared in October -- Decanter.
The Pichon Baron blend was 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot aged for 15 months in 70% new oak. The Comtesse blend had far less Cabernet Sauvignon (55%), less Merlot and a meaningful Cabernet Franc contribution.
For the Baron, Sean identified aromas of dusty cherry, cedar box, sous bois, and wet leaves. while the palate showed smoother tannins, good acid, dark fruit, and currants. The Comtesse on the other hand, exhibited less power with the lower Cabernet Sauvignon levels -- so much so, that he expressed concerns for its life. On the nose, dark cherry and some flowers, but light. Mouth: soft, but lacking depth. Some dark fruits again. Slight sour note. A bit tangy. Perhaps at the end of its life.
The 1996 Vintage
Star vintage for the Left Bank. Cabernets excelled, taking advantage of long hang time for ripening.
As was the case for the 1998, the Pichon Baron blend was 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot aged for 15 months in 70% new oak. The Comtesse blend was much higher in Cabernet Sauvignon than it was for the 1998, while the Merlot was half its '98 levels and both Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc were utilized in equal parts.
As was the case for the 1998, the Pichon Baron blend was 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot aged for 15 months in 70% new oak. The Comtesse blend was much higher in Cabernet Sauvignon than it was for the 1998, while the Merlot was half its '98 levels and both Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc were utilized in equal parts.
Sean saw the nose of the Pichon Baron as being different from the wines we had tasted to that time. Licorice and graphite. Mouth: nice cherries and currants. Smooth. Well integrated tannins and good acid. Delicious. Both of these wines were enjoyable but the Comtesse seemed to have a little more finesse. Nose: something truffle. Sous bois. More dark dried flowers. Mouth: very elegant. Loooong finish. Balanced. Sooo silky and velvety on the mouth. Tannins resolved but there. Stewed cherries and plum. Pencil lead. Best of the flight. Best of the night also.
The 1995 Vintage
This was the first really dry, unfrosted vintage for five years. But in fact it was arguably too dry. The vines suffered such drought that leaves turned yellow before the harvest even in such favoured spots as Château Latour’s vineyards. June, July and August were very hot and dry so that the vines did not have enough water for photosynthesis to proceed smoothly. This was one of the earliest vintages when Bordeaux’s growers had to get used to a lack of phenolic ripeness no matter how high the sugar level.The drought meant particularly small berries with thick skins (no need to bleed off surplus juice from the fermentation vats in 1995) and this doubtless helps to explain the firm, chewy tannins that dogged them in the past and are still perceptible in some of the wines – although the fine June meant that the flowering was very successful and the crop was one of the biggest on record. Cooler, wetter weather arrived in September and some of the grapes were picked in the rain which was viewed as potentially disastrous but in fact probably helped the final ripening of Cabernets.— Jancis Robinson
For Pichon Baron, 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot. For Comtesse, the highest level of Merlot seen for any of the two producers in any of the vintages under consideration.
The tannins that Jancis Robinson mentioned in the vintage notes are apparent in both producers' wines of this year. For Pichon Baron, a nose of sweet dark cherries with a slight cough-syrupy taste. Smoke. Less-resolved tannins on the palate. Not as balanced as the 96, but still nice. Wouldn’t kick it out of bed. The Comtesse was tight. More tannic on the mouth. Not much on the nose. Some flowers. Dusty and mineral. Drinking well. Plums, dark fruits, and dark cherry on the palate.
The 1989 Vintage
Fantastic vintage year for Europe. Bordeaux had no faults with reds. Abundant harvest of excellent quality.
For Pichon Baron, 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot. Aged for 15 months in 65% new oak. Less Cabernet Sauvignon for the Comtesse than for the Baron but more Merlot in addition to meaningful amounts of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.
The florality and elegance of the Comtesse comes knocking again. Petit Verdot show up. The Baron shows smoke and stewed cherries on the nose and dark cherries and cassis on the palate. Sean found this wine to be velvety and smooth. The Comtesse was perfumed on the nose. Floral with violets. A touch of clove (or spices), tobacco, and graphite. On the palate, dark plum, black currant. Smoother drinking and balanced. Very good.
The 1988 Vintage
Good but not great year that allowed consumers to drink this while waiting for 1989 and 1990 to mature. The wines are not developing as well as people had hoped. Some have developed a green, herbal or olive sensation. Merlot based wines were more successful —- winecellarinsider.com.
For Pichon Baron, 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot. Aged for 12 months in 60% new oak; remainder first passage. The Comtesse had the same composition as for the 1989.
Pichon nose: crème de cassis, black fruit, cedar, sous bois, wet leaves, and perhaps something off. Mouth: older with that dusty old cherry quality which Sean is beginning to associate with the Baron. The Comtesse "smelled of weird stuff." Both of these wines seemed off to Sean and are probably reflective of the vintage notes provided by winecellarinsider.com.
The 1975 Vintage
A hard, brutal, tannic year. Difficult vintage where, in most cases, the tannin outlived the fruit.I could not locate the Pichon Baron composition for this vintage. Sean noted its light ruby color and felt that it was good for the age! Slightly sour nose, a bit funky due to the age. Almost sweet smelling. Old dried cherries, reminds me of cherry fruit roll ups. Mouth, old, but fruit is still there. An almost candied-like fruit. Sour dark cherries on the mouth. Cherry cough syrup-like. Interesting.
The color also looked good for the Comtesse. Garnet and bright for its age. Something green on the nose. Green peppers perhaps? Nose opening up after few minutes and improved and moved more to the floral similar in other bottles. Mouth: dusty soft cherry. Plum. Very nice. Umami and savory as compared to earlier bottles. Different from the rest. Surprised how well this bottle drank considering the age and the vintage.
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The notes show a decidedly softer, more elegant look for the Comtesse versus the Baron. I congratulate Sean on his tasting notes in that they tie the wines to the growing conditions and the varietal composition thus allowing clear delineation between the wines in shared vintages. This is especially true in the cases where aromas from the Comtesse are enhanced by the addition of Petit Verdot to the blend.
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