The estate was founded in 1689 by Pierre de Mazure de Rauzan and the vineyard acquired its name a few years later when his daughter Thérèse received it as part of her dowry on her marriage to Jacques de Pichon Longueville, the first President of the Parliament of Bordeaux. It was divided upon the death of Baron Joseph in 1850 between his five children. However, only two of his children finally inherited the vineyards; Raoul and Virginie. Virginie married Count Henri de Lalande, giving her the title, and took over control of the domain. Her passion and the quality of her management made her a strong personality in the Médoc and she very much left her mark on the domain. In the 1855 classification, Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande acquired the status of 2eme Cru Classé.
The 76 hectares of this vineyard border the property of Château Latour and stretch south of Pauillac towards the Commune of Saint Julien, whence it gets its extraordinary charm. The exceptional character of the wines produced here, are distinguished by their elegance and finesse.
The vast majority of the vineyards are Gunzian gravel mounds of the classic Pauillac composition, with the deep bed of gravel placed over a substrata of clay and limestone. The commitment to sustainable farming practices extends throughout the 89 hectares of vineyards, with over 11 hectares fully converted to organic viticulture, and 15 hectares farmed biodynamically.
The temperatures were carefully regulated during the fermentation and the maceration to obtain an aromatic and silky expression of the vintage. Maceration: 18 to 24 days. Vinification by plot and vatting by gravity (into conical stainless steel vats).
12 months’ elevage in French oak (40% new), medium toast. Traditional racking. Egg white fining.
Yield: 42hl/ha
With temperatures above seasonal averages, the Winter was mild and unusually dry. Under these conditions, the Bud Break was particularly early, from March 20th. The coolness and rainfall in the Spring slowed down the development of the vine, and adjusted back to its average period of flowering between the end of May and the beginning of June. The unstable Spring weather, caused slight coulure on the Cabernet, around mid-June. The heat and the sun then settled in for the duration. A little rain in mid-July and early August favoured a rapid and homogeneous véraison from the 9th to 14th August.
Slow ripening, with dry, very sunny conditions and cool nights allowed the harvest to start on September 16th in a very healthy vineyard. Weather instability returned at the end of September and lasted until the end of the harvest on October 8th, without impacting on the quality of our grapes.
The nose fluctuates between Pauillac sap (cedar, graphite), fruit (ripe strawberry) and flowers (lily of the valley, lilac). Raising expectations of a rich and juicy palate. Unsurprisingly, we find the same impressions in the mouth. Long and sappy, the wine is velvety, held taut by a lovely acidity and driven by an almost physical sensation of tannin. The red fruits (strawberry, cherry) are combined with sandalwood and cedar, a confirmation of the Pauillac terroir.
Lamb, red meats, cheese, truffle and chocolate.
Serve at room temperature.
Jane Anson (93 points)
This is well structured and approaches 2010 in terms of its weight and depth of fruit. Deep spiced damson on the nose, you would be hard pressed not to say that this is as good as very many Cru Bourgeois 1st wines. Huge depth, similar to the 2018 but a little higher acidity, a little less round, a little more classic Pauillac in character. This is confident and serious with lots of tannins. A great 2nd wine, and a reminder of the consistently successful winemaking that is happening at this estate. Drinking Window 2024 – 2038
Neal Martin (92-94 points)
The 2019 Réserve de la Comtesse is conspicuously deep in colour. The bouquet takes time to unfurl with exceedingly pure blackberry, raspberry and cassis aromas, the oak seamlessly integrated. The palate is very well balanced with fresh acidity, fine grain tannins, a touch of salinity developing towards the finish that has more grip than previous vintages. Superb.
AOC Pauillac, Bordeaux
51% Cabernet Sauvignon
46% Merlot
3% Cabernet Franc
Natural Cork
14%
3.70
Yes
No
