The 2014 vintage in Bordeaux is often overlooked. The riper 2015s were more successful (and more expensive) on release, but there are some gems to be found here, especially so in the northern Médoc. Wines that were initially a little firm in character are now showing a core of cool, dark fruit that is beginning to come to the fore. The wines are fresh, balanced and pleasingly restrained.
2014 Léoville Poyferré is a perfect exponent of the vintage. This property’s opulent style and the cool nature of the vintage combine to produce a wine of elegance, harmony and depth. It is a wine for lovers of proper claret.
Neal Martin scores it 95 points, pronouncing it as “one of the standout Left Bank wines of the vintage” and describing it as “irresistible”. Jancis Robinson rates it 17.5+, describing “a combination of St-Julien's immaculate balance with the château's usual extra degree of ripeness.”
At £700 per dozen in bond it looks like a very good deal: a famous, highly-rated 2nd growth claret with eight years of maturity already under its belt for less than £75 per bottle on the table. Moreover, it is the least expensive Léoville Poyferre on our list bar the 2011.
Just about drinking now with a good decant, it will only improve with a few more years in the bottle and will keep for a decade or two. It is a great example of just how good the best 2014s are.
