The Wine Advocate | RP 98
Published: Mar 14, 2019

Having retreated into its shell, the deep garnet colored 2009 Leoville Poyferre gives up slowly revealing notions of cigar boxes, pencil lead, charcoal, rosehip tea and fragrant earth with a core of preserved plums, creme de cassis, espresso and Indian spices. Full, rich, seductive and voluptuously fruited in the mouth, the palate features firm yet beautifully velvety tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long and spicy.
Drink Date 2022 - 2058

Jamessuckling.com | JS 95
Published: Mar 20, 2019

Ripe and creamy but also refined and lively, this is a beautiful 2009 Medoc, the fine tannins adding a lot to the long and silky finish. The obvious bitter chocolate note will either delight you or be a touch too much. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019)

Winemaker

The vine is an extraordinary plant with the natural capacity to adapt to weather changes and rising temperatures. Since 2001, the beautiful Indian summers, along with the absence of rainfall during the equinoxes, have allowed the Cabernet Sauvignon to ripen perfectly. Is this Bordeaux's answer to global warming? Man's work: careful mastery of the yields and rigorous selection at each step of the vine growing and winemaking processes have made this one of the most attractive vintages of the decade, on the level of the memorable 1982. After a cold, wet winter (488 mm of rainfall from November to March) the subsoil was well endowed with water. The spring was hot and humid but these high temperatures helped the vines to develop quickly. The flowering occurred mostly during a dry, hot period with ideal conditions for even the development of the grapes. From May, temperatures were already reaching 31.4C and the thermometer even showed 38.8 on 30th June. July was very hot and sunny except for the first 5 five days. The month of August and the first two weeks of September were warm and dry, finishing off the vintage perfectly. The ever deeper root system of our vine plants allows them to get through periods of drought with no problem at all. The ripeness tests carried out from the 7th of September gave very surprising results: high potential alcohol and acidity as well as a promising phenolic content. The de-leafing on the sunrise side and second-generation bunch removal optimized the quality of the harvest. Welcome showers on 18th and 19th September added the final touch to this exceptional vintage.

Planted Grape Varieties
62.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot, 2.5% Cabernet Franc

Soils
Terraces of Mindel gravel, sandy-clay subsoil

Harvest Dates
29th September to 12th October