Château Leoville Las-Cases

One of the greatest wines in the Médoc, the vineyards of Léoville-Las-Cases lie in the northernmost tip of the St Julien appellation, abutting the Gironde, and only separated from those of Chateau Latour to the north by the Juillac, which drains into the Gironde. Whereas the other Leoville vineyards, those of Barton and Poyferré, consist of a patchwork of numerous plots, those of Las-Cases are largely concentrated in this single block. This is the Grand Clos, a walled vineyard, the stone wall contiguous with that running around Latour, the highlight of which is the stone archway surmounted by the lion of Las-Cases, which can also be found above the doorway to the tasting room at the chateau, and which also graces the label.The vineyards are planted to 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, with an average age of about 30 years.

The fruit is harvested by hand before transport to the chai, where the berries are destemmed before a gentle pressing and then fermented under temperature-controlled conditions. The fermentation vessels include a fascinating mix of wooden, cement and stainless steel vats. The fermenting must is pumped over to submerge the cap and there is a maceration of between two and three weeks. When finished the wine is pumped from the chai to the barrel cellar on the other side of the road through an underground pipe. Here it is transferred into oak barriques, between 50% and 100% new for the grand vin, Château Léoville-Las-Cases, depending on the vintage, something in the order of 25% for the second wine Clos du Marquis, and heads off to the barrel cellars which are to the south of the main chai where it rests for up to 20 months.