2017 Leoville Las Cases
By Chateau Leoville Las Cases
2017 Leoville Las Cases from Chateau Leoville Las Cases, St-Julien, Bordeaux
The esteemed 2017 vintage from Chateau Leoville Las Cases encapsulates the fortitude and grace of St-Julien's finest offerings. In a year where Bordeaux was met with climatic challenges, this wine emerges as a testament to the resilience and meticulous care in viticulture and vinification that Chateau Leoville Las Cases is renowned for. It stands as a beacon for collectors and investors, mirroring the chateau's historical benchmarks of quality.
An Ode to Balance Amidst Adversity
The year 2017 was not devoid of vicissitude; frost notably took its toll on many Bordelaise vineyards. However, the resilient terroir of Leoville's enclosures triumphed, creating an opportunity for the vintage to be closely examined for its unique character. While many estates struggled, this particular plot benefited from its strategic location and exceptional land composition.
The Quintessence of 2017: Structure Meets Elegance
Tasting the 2017 Leoville Las Cases summons an array of finely woven tannins paired with vivacious acidity, indicating a laudable ageability. Enticing blackcurrant accented with subtle graphite and cedar notes emerge amidst the complex palate profile. What truly sets apart this creation is a palpable tension between power and elegance; a harmonious dance that reflects a year where nature and nurture skilfully intertwined.
Oenophiles with discernment will note the innate sophistication in this wine's poised maturation trajectory—a facet fuelled by the estate's judicious application of new French oak, which never overshadows but rather elevates the purity of fruit.
In summary, while every vintage of Leoville Las Cases is indeed an ode to St-Julien's fine pedigree, the 2017 release demonstrates how patience and prowess can overcome adversity. It's a vintage that affirms its worthiness as an investable wine—a clear embodiment of both place and time. As such, I anticipate that the journey with the 2017 Leoville Las Cases will be one marked with lucid moments of appreciation, ever unfolding in complexity for those who have the foresight to embrace it within their portfolio.Current market price
£1,560.00
12x75cl
Highest score
98
POP score
86.67
Scores and tasting notes
This comes from 50- to 90-year-old vines and is a blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc and 10% Merlot with 13.28% alcohol, 3.72 pH and an IPT of 71. The 2017 Léoville Las Cases is deep garnet-purple in color, and wow, the nose bursts with beautiful blackcurrant cordial, blackberry pie and blueberry preserve notes followed by hints of lilacs, dark chocolate, cedar chest, sassafras and licorice with emerging wafts of oolong tea, lavender and iron ore. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is an exercise in elegance and soft-spoken nuances within a mouth-coating palate of almost electric black and blue fruits, framed by very firm, exquisitely ripe, fine-grained tannins and seamless freshness, finishing epically long and wonderfully perfumed. Damn, that’s good.
Lisa Perrotti-Brown - The Wine Advocate, 16 March 2020
This is very muscular with formed and bright tannins that give the wine super drive and length. The tannins build on the finish with a lovely integration of black fruits. Serious for the vintage.
James Suckling - jamessuckling.com
The 2017 Léoville Las Cases, a blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon with 11% Cabernet Franc and 10% Merlot from 50- to 90-year-old vines, is deep garnet-purple in color and simply sings of crushed blackcurrants, wild blueberries and plum preserves with notions of wood smoke, cigar boxes, crushed rocks and beef drippings. Medium-bodied with wonderful intensity and vivacity, it gives a firm, fine-grained frame and a densely packed mid-palate, finishing long and earthy. This should age incredibly!
Wine Advocate - Lisa Perrotti-Brown - robertparker.com
The 2017 Léoville Las Cases is remarkably elegant and polished for this typically brutish Saint-Julien. Persistence more than power is the key element that distinguishes the 2017 from most other vintages and most other Saint-Juliens as well. The classic Las Cases flavor profile is very much in evidence, but in a wine that is silky, nuanced and exceptionally polished. In 2017, Las Cases is truly magical, and one of the most complete wines of the Left Bank. In a word: sublime. Don't miss it. Tasted two times.
Antonio Galloni - Antonio Galloni - vinous.com - May '18
This has the vintage’s fresh acidity, which does a wonderful job of driving the core of blueberry, black currant and blackberry fruit along. Light anise and graphite accents lend typicity, with a sleek mineral edge on the finish. Rock solid.—J.M.
Wine Spectator - James Molesworth - winespectator.com
The 2017 Léoville Las-Cases was picked between 15 September and 4 October, cropped at 37hl/ha and as usual, comes from the oldest vines that average around 50-years old. This year there is 13.28° alcohol. It is matured in 90% new oak and contains 7.5% vin de presse. It has a very clean and precise bouquet with blackberry, just a touch of blueberry, violet and a hint of bay leaf. This gains intensity with aeration but it is not as detailed as last year’s 2016. The palate is medium-bodied with more supple tannins than usual (that word is apt – there is nothing “soft” about this Saint-Julien). It has great depth with layers of black fruit laced with graphite and a pinch of white pepper, whilst it delivers fine salinity on the sappy finish. Excellent.
Neal Martin - Neal Martin - vinous.com - May '18