Château Pichon Baron vertical tasting: 1975 - 2008 (selected vintages)

Having tasted 11 vintages from 2nd-Growth Pauillac estate Château Pichon Comtesse Lalande, members of the Orlando Friends Tasting Group thought it only natural that we hold a similar tasting of the wines from the shared-origin Pichon Baron estate. Tasting Group members contributed the wines for the tasting either from their own stocks or acquisition from reputable retailers. We sought to have as many common vintages as possible with the Comtesse tasting in order to allow for meaningful cross-estate comparisons.

The table below shows the wines included in the tasting, broken into flights based on the decade of production. The table also shows the 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 seven of the tasted vintages.

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

Varietal composition for Comtesse wines are shown in parentheses.

In closer examination of the varietal composition, it was observed that little to no Cabernet Franc or Petit Verdot were employed in the Baron wines while, in each of the shared vintages, Lalande exploits one or both varieties. In every shared vintage (with the exception of the 2003, Pichon Baron employed more Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend than did Comtesse.

The tasting proceeded from youngest to oldest both within flights and overall. The wines were weighted towards the 2000s and 1990s where it had been more evenly balanced between the 80s, 90s, and 2000s in the Comtesse tasting.

Tasters were provided with a description of the growing conditions for each vintage in a handout. Each flight was poured, tasted, and discussed after which a consensus was reached as to the wine of the flight. The wine of the night was selected from flight "winners." Tasting notes follow.

Flight 1: The 2000s

2008 Château Pichon Baron

Poor weather conditions. Activity throughout the summer on leaf- and crop-thinning. Fair weather arrived towards the end of the season. Ripening slow and regular throughout September and October.

A blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon and 29% Merlot. Macerated for 14 - 25 days and then aged for 20 months, 80% in new oak barrels and 20 percent in first-passage oak. 

Salinity, graphite, blue fruit, baking spices, licorice, and nutmeg on the nose. Beautifully balanced with a nice, long finish -- Author.

Nose: leather, dark fruit, graphite. Mouth: dry. Tannins; but not overwhelming. Sourish. Balanced. More dark fruits, dark cherries. — Sean

Extremely light in body but very acidic. Similar to many 2008s I have had and reflective of the season. Green with peppers -- Brian

Nose not telling much. Light leather. Masculine. Palate is also mute: tannins and a little acid -- Greg and Theresa.

2005 Château Pichon Baron

Thinning work in mid-July on young vines and mid-August on old vines. Even more stringent double selection process before and after de-stemming.

The wine is a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc. It was aged for 15 months in 80% new oak and 20% first passage.

Spice, dark fruit, baking spices, savoriness, black pepper. Rounded and powerful on the palate with coal and unresolved tannins. Creamy. -- Author

Nose: black currant, sous bois, truffles, and mushroom. Leather. Mouth more tannic but surprising for a 2005 since somewhat drinkable. Needs way more time, but impressive. One to watch down the road — Sean

Will be so much better with time. Great nose with plenty of herbs, dry cherry, and fig -- Brian.

More fruit than '03. Wet earth, acid, graphite, cigar box, and some red fruit. Opening up but still some tightness -- Greg and Theresa.

2003 Château Pichon Baron

Heat wave the defining hallmark of the vintage. Early bud break and flowering led to crop thinning. Cluster-thinning in the middle of veraison. Very high sugar concentration and low berry weight. Undeniably a quality harvest. Very concentrated sweet musts. Very favorable weather conditions enabled attainment of optimal ripeness.

The wine is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot aged for 15 months in 70% new oak barrels, remainder first passage.

Beautiful on the palate with coal and a long creamy finish -- Author.

Leather, something green, and a slight herbal note on the nose. Slight smoke. Mouth: more acid, tannic, stronger palate. Black currant. Dark cherry, raspberry. Drinking this one the most of the first three wines — Sean.

Wonderful nose.  Much more fruit than others per the vintage. Plum fruits, but not as much fruit as I expected as tannin and acid overshadowed (still) -- Brian.

Good acid, a bit of smoke, graphite, and pencil lead. Masculine and bold. Not as much fruit as we thought it would have for a 2003 -- Greg and Theresa.

2002 Château Pichon Baron

Early bud break and flowering. Extensive leaf removal and thinning. Very high sugar concentration levels and particularly high polyphenols.

The wine is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot. 15 - 23 days maceration followed by 15 months aging in 70% new oak barrels, remainder first passage.

Beautiful nose. Black pepper, mint, and coal. Balanced. Butterfly feet on the palate. Good acid level. A little bit of green pencil lead. Still some tannins showing -- Author.

Nose: smoke, leather, cigar box, and green pepper. Mouth: tannic, big sand paper tongue. Fruit, deep black fruit which is nice. Not a fan of 02 but nice. Overly tannic for me. I don’t think the tannins will resolve much more — Sean.

Somewhat mature and integrated with herbal notes again. Pretty exciting for a 2002 vintage. Can really taste the merlot fruit -- Brian.

Nose of a typical Bordeaux wine, immediately recognizable: wet earth, barnyard (that I love in a good Bordeaux), and ripe red and dark fruit. Very nice and surprisingly good. A little green leaf of vegetable something. Balanced with some tannins -- Greg and Theresa.

2000 Château Pichon Baron

Leaf removal began in the middle of June in most plots and thinning continued until the onset of version.

The wine is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc. 15 - 25 hours of maceration and 10 - 15 days fermentation. 15 months aging in 80% new oak barrels, remainder first passage.

Hint of VA. Blue fruit, pencil lead, and black pepper. Some red fruit on the palate. Non-comprehensive finish.

Nose: currants, crème de cassis, berries, leather, and licorice. Pencil lead. Mouth: very nice, delicious. This is my wine of the flight. Smoothest yet. More balanced. Velvety, but may also need more time, or could improve — Sean.

Integrated but still has lots of life (like most 2000s).  Wine of the flight. Tannins and acid are subdued and you get cherry and licorice -- Brian.

Ripe red fruit, acid, beautiful nose, touch of green. A bit too much acid still on finish for me which makes it slightly behind the 2002 as a favorite of the flight. It doesn’t seem to be quite as balanced as the 2002 but still a very good wine indeed -- Greg and Theresa.

Flight 2: The 1990s

1998 Château Pichon Baron

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.

80% cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot. Aged for 15 months in 70% new oak.

Old pencil lead, black pepper, and coal -- Author.

Nose: dusty cherry, cedar box, sous bois, and wet leaves. Mouth: smoother tannins. Good acid. Dark fruit. Currants. Not bad at all -- Sean.

Great acid but not very long finish. Heavy tannins -- Brian.

Decent fruit. Leather. Light, velvety nose. Not a long finish. Too much acid so unbalanced -- Greg and Theresa.

1996 Château Pichon Baron

Star vintage for the Left Bank. Cabernets excelled, taking advantage of long hang time for ripening.

80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot aged for 15 months in 70% new oak.

Same nose as the '98 with the addition of spiciness and salinity -- Author.

Nose: different from what came before. Licorice and graphite. Mouth: nice cherries and currants. Smooth. Well integrated tannins and good acid. Delicious — Sean.

Very similar to 1995, great nose and starting to open but has tons of life. Bright cherry flavors and better than 1995 but still so similar. Cedar notes -- Brian.

Immediate reaction was OMG this is yummy! Amazing, very Bordeaux nose. Ripe red fruit, chewy tobacco, wet earth. So balanced. Spectacular wine -- Greg and Theresa.

1995 Château Pichon Baron

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

80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot

Nose: sweet dark cherries with a slight cough-syrupy taste. Smoke. Mouth: less resolved tannins. Not as balanced as the 96, but still nice. Wouldn’t kick it out of bed — Sean.

Very similar to 1996, but not as good.  Green vegetable notes and dry fruits -- Brian.

Nose not showing much. Fruit is minimal, a bit of dark fruit, a bit of cough syrup or something medicinal, pencil lead. Mouth wateringly dry. Not as balanced but good -- Greg and Theresa.

1990 Château Pichon Baron

After a very mild winter, spring was cool, but warmed up in May, leading to early flowering. July and August were the driest since 1961, but welcome September showers helped the grapes to ripen to levels similar to 1989, although sugar levels for Cabernet were slightly lower. Yields were high, so many estates green-harvested. Tannins were ripe and acidities sound, so the wines emerged as rich and beautifully balanced -- Decanter.

80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot

On the nose creme de cassis liqueur, blue and black fruits, a touch of fennel, and licorice. Classic graphite/lead pencil Pauillac nose. Excellent. Best nose of the flight thus far. Mouth: Richer. Velvety! great fruit! Big dark cherry/currant. Lovely dark fruit. Most crème de cassis liqueur of all. Wine of the flight so far, may be wine of the night! Edit: wine of the night! Spectacular! -- Sean.

Wow. Wine of the flight. Bing cherry fruit with raspberries and right where it needs to be. Perfectly integrated at this time. Less of a brute than the others when it came to the tannin and acid -- Brian.

Fruit-forward nose that took awhile to appear.  On the palate, pencil lead, tannin. Dry. Tannins have not fallen off. Made me question the variety composition since prior wines were predominately Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot balancing out the blend -- Greg and Theresa.

Flight 3: The 1980s

1989 Château Pichon Baron

Fantastic vintage year for Europe. Bordeaux had no faults with reds. Abundant harvest of excellent quality.

73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot. Aged for 15 months in 65% new oak.

Nose: smoke, stewed cherries. Mouth: more dark cherries, cassis again. Velvety and smooth -- Sean.

More fruit than the 1988 and very well balanced. The fruit on this one did change for me and got disjointed. Had that Cherry cough syrup smell and taste later in night. Would love to try this after being opened for multiple hours -- Brian.

Good nose. A curry nose or soy or something Asian. On the palate, tannins, leather, softer. Good balance in the wine. Light fruit, velvety, acid -- Greg and Theresa.

1988 Château Pichon Baron

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.

70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot. Aged for 12 months in 60% new oak; remainder first passage.

Nose: crème de cassis, black fruit, cedar, sous bois, wet leaves, and perhaps something off. Sorry! Food arrived. Distracted, so didn’t write much for this one. Mouth: older with that dusty old cherry quality which I’m beginning to associate with the Baron --- Sean.

Very good wine and I liked it a lot. High acidity with plum, herbs, and meat. At peak -- Brian.

Less fruit. Still some acid but falling off. Dull in comparison to the 1989 -- Greg and Theresa.

Flight 4: 1975

1975 Château Pichon Baron

A hard, brutal, tannic year. Difficult vintage where, in most cases, the tannin outlived the fruit.

Light ruby color - color 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. *Hands down the wine of the flight -- Sean.

First opening, the smell was ok and the taste almost metallic. After a while it was much better, with bright fruits and fully integrated tannins. In a great place -- Brian.

Incredibly complex fr a 50-year-old wine. Cedar chest/mothball aromas. Acid still there. Fruit, then mid-palate is a little graphite, then goes back to showing dark fruit on the finish.  A bit of black pepper on the finish as well with a bit of dusty cherry. So surprising for its age and such a treat to experience -- Greg and Theresa.

Richard summarized the tasting as follows: The 1990 stood out far above the others. It was well rounded and balanced with the perfect amount of fruit. The 1989 was my pick for runner-up, having the same characteristics as the 1990. Good, but not quite as good. A surprise as to how good the '75 was and how much knowledge Marshall has. Fun tasting. Good group. Look forward to the next.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme