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Léoville Las Cases 2018

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > St Julien
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyCabernet Sauvignon/Cabernet Franc/Merlot

One of the leading "Super-Second" growths of the Médoc. The vines are situated alongside those of Chateau Latour, just over the St Julien border. The young Cabernet vines and older Merlot vines are used for the "Petit Lion" label. The most Pauillac-like of all the Saint Juliens with a strong Cabernet Sauvignon character. Much of the Merlot now goes into Le Petit Lion which is 45% Merlot in 2018. The vines further inland from the "enclos" are used to make Clos du Marquis. The 2018 grand vin is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Cabernet Franc and is being aged in 90% new oak. The yield was 35.5 hl/ha and the alcohol level is 14.49%

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Château Léoville-Las Cases

Label

Tasting Notes

The 2018 Léoville Las Cases is composed of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc and 9% Merlot, harvested September 15 to October 4 with yields of 35.5 hectoliters per hectare, it has 14.49% alcohol and was aged in 90% new barriques. Deep purple-black colored, it needs a fair bit of coaxing to reveal striking scents of blackcurrant pastilles, wild blueberries and redcurrant jelly, giving way to notions of crushed rocks, lavender, Indian spices, unsmoked cigars and black truffles, plus a provocative waft of rose oil. The full-bodied palate is densely laden with black fruit preserves and earthy layers, accented by bright, lively red berry and floral sparks. It has a rock-solid frame of firm, ripe, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing very long and wonderfully minerally. The tannins are so beautifully approachable even at this youthful stage, making it delicious to drink now, but afford it 5-6 years in bottle to allow those finer nuances to emerge and drink it over the next 40+ years. Drink 2026-2066.

99
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (End of Mar), March 2021

Tasted blind at Southwold 2018. Saturated ruby colour. Savoury, subtle and slightly smoky on the nose - this is very enticing and opens up measurably with air to show deep black fruit. The tannins are immediate and persistent on the palate, a firm but ripe structure to build upon. Here, the fruit is intense but always savoury, bringing herbal tones and notes of tobacco. A wine of great depth, the warmth of the vintage has lent itself to this wine, making sure the fruit keeps pace with the structure through to a very long finish.

96
Thomas Parker MW, Farr Vintners, February 2022

An elegant, complex nose of blackberries, blueberries and herbal and spice notes with dark-chocolate and earthy undertones. Violets, flowers and graphite, too. It’s full-bodied with firm, layered tannins and a crushed-stone undertone throughout the fresh, velvety and layered palate. Very complex, muscular and formed. The finish is endless. Lowest percentage of press wine ever in this. So deep. Try after 2027.

99
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, March 2021

Tasted blind. First bottle TCA. Bright, dense crimson. Rather enticingly enigmatic on the nose. Then rich and ripe and expansive on the palate. Lovely balance and restraint. Really builds towards the end. Very fine tannins. 14.5%
Drink 2027 – 2045

18
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, February 2022

80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, 9% Merlot. 90% new oak, pH 3.65. Barrel sample.
Black core with narrow purple rim. A moment of hush needed here. So dark and so intense but also with incredible beauty in its restraint. Silky even with so many layers of tannin. pH 3.65 – quite a miracle in 2018. So dry but so not drying. The freshness from both the pH and the tannins. So fine, it just slides across the palate even if the tannin level is high. A wine of great power and restraint, and tannic finesse. Opens to a tiny note of wild herbs even though it is perfectly ripe, more aromatic as it opens. (JH) 14.49%
Drink 2030-2050

18.5
Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2019

Very deep and opaque in colour. The nose is toasty and spicy, with cloves, nutmeg and cassis. The palate is heady and rich on entry with inky black fruit and monolithic, firm tannins. Full of spice, there are notes of roasted coffee bean, star anise and clove to complement the blackcurrant fruit. This is impressively rich but very dense in tannin at this stage. A long finish promises more to come, but this is another Leoville Las Cases that will require significant cellaring before reaching its peak.

94+
Farr Vintners, Farr Tasting, April 2019

A candidate for the wine of the vintage is the 2018 Léoville Las Cases. My notes on this incredible wine are laced with expletives that I, unfortunately, can’t repeat here. Safe to say, however, it’s one of the greatest young Bordeaux I’ve been lucky enough to taste. Based on a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, and 9% Cabernet Franc, from yields of 35.5 hectoliters per hectare, that will spend 19 months in barrel, it offers a massive bouquet of crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, crushed violets, tobacco, and a liquid rock-like minerality. Pure magic on the palate as well, with full-bodied richness, building structure, and a seamless, weightless, yet powerful mouthfeel, it has everything you could want from a wine. It has the purity and balance to drink well in 7-8 years (I wouldn’t hold it against you if couldn’t wait that long) and will keep for 50 years or more. For the tech geeks out there, this hit 14.49% alcohol, 3.65 pH, and an IPT of 80.

98/100
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, May 2019

This is backward and dense, with thickly layered plum, blackberry, fig and blueberry reduction flavors wrapped liberally in warm ganache and melted licorice notes. A long echo of smoldering charcoal emerges at the very end. There's a lot to resolve here as the rich and austere sides are still melding, but the extra amplitude doesn't distort anything; it just all goes to 11.

97/100
James Molesworth, Wine Spectator, March 2019

(80 Cabernet Sauvignon, 11 Cabernet Franc, 9 Merlot) | 90% new oak | 14.49% alc | 80 IPT Las Cases manages, yet again, to make one of the most composed and complete wines of the year. Following on from a sensational nose, a super-complex initial burst of fruit hits the palate and it left me reeling, while I desperately tried to compute what was going on. There is a coolness here which balances the exuberance on the palate and it is magical. In complete contrast to Ducru, this is a Zen-like wine with very fine length and serious definition. On the face of it the blend, the alcohol and oak look very similar to that of Ducru’s but the flavour is the antithesis and I adore the fact that two great estates have made such exquisite but contrasting wines in this vintage. Already very complex, there is every sign that this will turn out to be one of the truly great vintages for Las Cases. I know that this is a relatively forward style of wine for this venerable Château but I would still bet that patience rewards those who wait. There is so much depth and harmony in this wine it would be a shame to drink it before every nook and cranny can be fully explored.

19.5+
Matthew Jukes, MatthewJukes.com, April 2019
Read more tasting notes...

OMG. This shows amazing depth of fruit and density. Full-bodied and so layered with incredible fruit and power. Blackberries. Blueberries. Violets. Hints of dried flowers. Fantastic fruit and tannins, yet agile and energetic. The château says 2016 plus, plus.

99/100
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2019

“We produced great Cabernet Franc this year,” Directeur Général Pierre Graffeuille told me during my visit to Léoville Las Cases. Even though only 3% of the press wine was added back, he was also absolutely glowing about the quality of this too. And he should be—the finished blend for the 2018 Léoville Las Cases is yet another triumph for this great estate. Composed of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc and 9% Merlot, harvested September 15 to October 4 with yields of 35.5 hectoliters per hectare, it has 14.49% alcohol and will be aged in barriques, 90% new. Very deep purple-black in color, it is a little closed to begin, slowly emerging from the glass to reveal subtle woodsmoke, violets, tilled soil and underbrush scents over a core of warm cassis, wild blueberries and redcurrant jelly plus hints of rare beef and iron ore. Full-bodied, rich, super concentrated and bursting with latent energy, this is an atomic bomb waiting to go off in your mouth. It has a rock-solid foundation of firm, very ripe, very finely grained tannins and bold freshness supporting the muscular fruit through the epically long, amazingly nuanced finish. Simply breathtaking.

98/100
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (April 2019), April 2019
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.