Château Léoville Barton Saint-Julien 2021 - 2nd Grand Cru Classé

Bettane & Desseauve

About the domain :

Under Anthony Barton's sober, honest and passionate management, this cru has joined the Médoc's supreme elite, without driving up its sales prices too much. The wine's current quality can be explained by the age and location of the vines, which allow us to combine quantity and quality, and by the desire to preserve and optimize the most classically Médoc style. The mystery of its character remains, for this cru de grande garde is born ready-made, with an almost creamy consistency that makes it immediately noticeable and loved. The new generation of the family has little to change...

Guide Hachette des vins

About the wine:

The color is sustained, as is the nose, initially toasty and vanilla, then revealing hints of spicy red fruit and peony. Supple and fresh at the outset, the body unfolds generously, lending its dense flesh to tannins coated by a toasty woodiness that is still in evidence. A youthful Léoville Barton, matured and built to last, displaying the fullness of the cru despite the difficulties of the vintage. 2029-2038

About the domain :

Although Irishman Thomas Barton set up his trading business in Chartrons in 1725, it wasn't until 1821 that his grandson Hugh acquired Château Langoa, and then in 1826 part of the former Léoville estate, which was created in the early 17th century and split into several parts during the French Revolution. Since then, the estate has remained in the Barton family (Lilian Barton-Sartorius since 2006), which extends its 51 ha of vines south of the village of Saint-Julien. No home or winery here, vinification and ageing take place at Langoa.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the domain :

Since 1985, under the guidance of Anthony Barton and his daughter Lilian, the cru has gone from strength to strength. Success has become triumph, as Léoville Barton has consistently risen to the highest level of Bordeaux's grands crus since 1998. Apart from an obvious taste for work well done, the secret of this success lies in the high age of this ancient vineyard, which allows for ripe, concentrated grapes. Fleshier and fruitier en primeur than Léoville Las Cases or Léoville Poyferré, Baron enchants with its fatness, its supreme balance, which it owes to its terroir, and a profound naturalness of expression. More open in its prime, the wine often goes through a phase of austerity, then gradually takes on its definitive form, displaying one of the Médoc's most complex and elegant bouquets as it ages. What's more, given its quality and consistency, prices are always very affordable.

Wine Enthusiast

About the wine:

Sandalwood and gray pepper aromas lead to a powerful, elegant and refined wine. It has weight and concentration. It's an impressive wine, destined to age well. Drink from 2028.

Terre de Vins

About the wine:

Léoville-Barton expresses itself in majesty on this 2021 vintage, just captured on a firm, tasty, articulate flesh, with a touch of austerity in the tannic framework that characterizes its terroir signature. The body is bloody and straightforward, elongated and slender. Well accomplished.

Yves Beck

About the wine:

While still marked by its ageing, Léoville Barton 2021 does not fail to display its grandeur and depth, even in the context of 2021. Its fine-grained tannins provide a platform for ageing, while offering an accessibility that will enable us to measure its aptitudes from its youth to its apotheosis... And that's likely to take time, so we just need to have enough in the cellar! 2027-2051

Tastingbook - Markus Del Monego

About the wine:

Deep purple color with violet highlights and black core. Elegant nose, initially closed but opening up quite nicely, presenting an aroma of dark berries, subtle toastiness, sweet spices with discreet floral notes in the background. On the palate, the tannins are silky, the wine fresh and juicy, very elegant and persistent.

Anthocyanes - Yohan Castaing

About the wine:

Although slightly shy and unexpressive, the bouquet of Château Léoville Barton 2021 is reminiscent of the beautiful austerity of the Médoc, with earthy, root-like notes. On the palate, the wine is very smooth, with velvety, fine, delicate tannins for a very elegant, harmonious, well-structured whole. In the context of the vintage, this is a very fine wine that expresses itself more on the palate than on the nose, and has incredible potential. A vintage that is particularly well-suited to this cru, which, in my opinion, makes a wine above 2020.