Château Pichon-Longueville Baron 2025 Pauillac 2e Grand Cru Classé - OWC6

Falstaff
99 punten
Deep dark ruby garnet, opaque core, violet reflections, delicate rim brightening. Ripe black cherries, fine cassis, a hint of precious wood, delicate nougat, tobacco nuances, inviting bouquet. Taut, tightly woven, ripe cherry fruit, extract-sweet texture, fine tannins, freshly structured, mineral-lemon nuances on the finish, shows energy and length, sure maturity potential.

The Wine Cellar Insider
97-99 punten
The complex aromatic profile expresses flowers, black currants, licorice, black cherries, cocoa, espresso, cigar wrappers, and a touch of mint. The palate delivers a beautiful combination of vitality, sweetness, energy, and purity in the fruits. The long, vibrant finish is packed with layers of fruits. Yet, even with all the concentration, there is an elegance, and regal charm meshed with power. The endnotes continue expanding, and building long after the wine has left the glass. This modern classic will be great with just 3-5 years of bottle age. It also has the potential to age and evolve for 3 - 4 decades. The vintage was shaped in large part by daily tastings of the berries in each parcel, and even single rows of vines, seeking the best moment to pick. Another factor was which tanks to use for fermentations as well as what parcels went into specific tanks due to the vintages low yields. The wine blends 84% Cabernet Sauvignon with 16% Merlot. 13.3% ABV, 3.72 pH. The harvest took place September 8 - September 24. This marks the earliest start for a harvest in the history of the estate. Yields were quite low at 24 hectoliters per hectare. The wine is aging in 70% new, French oak barrels. Drink from 2032-2070.

Wine Advocate
96-98 punten
A brilliant achievement, the 2025 Pichon-Longueville Baron, a blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot (70% new oak), features a notably high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon for a warm vintage, exceeding that of 2020 and 2022. It reveals a refined bouquet of dark wild berries, cassis, spice, lead pencil and licorice. Medium- to full-bodied, dense and concentrated, it’s built around a fleshy, finely structured core of fruit with a distinctly Cabernet-driven profile, combining freshness and tension with notable depth. It should age gracefully over the next two to three decades.

Antonio Galloni, Vinous
96-98 punten
Silky, aromatic and layered in the glass, the 2025 Pichon Baron is a total stunner. What a wine. Sweet red cherry/plum fruit, blood orange and rose petal are some of the many notes that caress the palate. Hints of pomegranate, mint and exotic spice appear later, adding layers of nuance. The wine's striking mid-palate sweetness and overall balance are the stuff dreams are made of. This is exquisite. Yields were just 24 hectoliters per hectare. The 2025 is expected to spend 18 months in French oak, 70% new.

Lisa Perrotti-Brown
96-98 punten
Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2025 Pichon Baron is a little closed and broody to start off, soon opening up to reveal notes of warm cassis, boysenberry preserves, graphite, and black raspberries, plus suggestions of charcoal, black olives, and violets. The medium-bodied palate shimmers with energetic black and blue fruit layers, supported by ripe, fine-grained tannins and fantastic tension, finishing long and perfumed. The blend is 84% Cabernet Sauvignon and 16% Merlot. It has a pH of 3.72 and the alcohol is 13.3%. It is aging in French oak barriques, 80% new, for 18 months

Neal Martin, Vinous
95-97 punten
The 2025 Pichon Baron was picked over 16 days between September 8 and 24 at just 24 hl/ha, matured in 70% new oak. Like the Les Griffons, it has a subtle estuarine/sea spray element that intertwines with the mélange of red and black fruit. The Merlot is actually more expressive than recent vintages. The palate is medium-bodied, with grainy tannins, lovely crispness and elegance, gaining depth as it moves into its final third. Slightly chalky tannins (a leitmotif of the vintage, especially in Pauillac), gentle grip, with an almost mellow finish, suggest that it might be earlier drinking than the 2019 or 2022. Superb.

Decanter
97 punten
Dark berry fruit aromas. Ripe and grippy, this takes hold straight away with upfront tannins making their mark, covering the mouth in a fine layer of chalkiness but with a cool, wet stone element too. So mineral, very transparent in terms of terroir expression. Lithe and focused, there’s tension as well as. You can feel the muscles of the Cabernet but there’s a slightly chew and juiciness behind the tannin wall. Very precise, with meticulous detail to the tannins, fruit, and cooling acidity. Sophisticated and very enjoyable, if more tense at this point than some others. Blueberry and plum and fresh mint. There’s a real delicacy, pixelated aspect to the overall expression - grand and majestic. Harvest started on 8 September. 3.72pH.

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux
97 punten
Restrained power, elegant fine grained tannins, gentle extraction at 26C, rosebuds evident. This has clear Pauillac character, coupled with the finesse and drinkability of the vintage. Again the anis and slate that I have seen in a number of the best wines this year. Very impressive. 70% new oak. 3.72 pH, 24hl/ha, 2nd year in a row with such low yields.

James Suckling
96-97 punten
A very structured red with intense tannins, finishing polished and refined. It's medium-to-full-bodied with super creamy tannins and a long finish. Granular tannins.

Jancis Robinson
17.5/20 punten
Classic in weight and style. Intense and floral on the nose, on the palate dark fruit and graphite. Tannins abundant but polished, the texture fine. Plenty of freshness. Powerful but refined.