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Léoville Poyferré 2017

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > St Julien
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyCabernet Sauvignon/Merlot

Like its neighbour Léoville Barton, Poyferré usually offers good value for money when first offered en primeur. The wines here are more smooth, ripe and fleshy than the seriously structured wines of Barton and Lascases. The result is a delicious St Julien that can usually charm early in its life and can stand the test of time. A frequent winner of blind tastings. Plantings in the 80 hectare vineyard are 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 8% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc. Fruit from the younger vines goes into "Le Pavillon de Poyferré" whilst "Moulin Riche"is made from a separate part of the vineyard.

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Château Léoville Poyferré

Label

Tasting Notes

The 2017 Léoville-Poyferré has a beautifully defined bouquet with mineral-rich red fruit that is utterly refined and focused, a wine that looks as if it will be open for business before the more recalcitrant 2016. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins. This is silky smooth in texture with plush black and blue fruit, pinned together by a killer line of acidity and impressive tension on the finish. Not a vintage to be ignored from this estate. Tasted at the Léoville-Poyferré vertical at the château with Sara Lecompte Cuvelier.

93
Neal Martin, vinous.com, June 2021

Tasted blind. Deep ruby colour. Blue fruit, crème de cassis and baking spices with a hint of fig on the nose, this is inky and rich. Plush and chewy on the palate, there are layers of charred wood, incense, blueberry and bramble fruit together. This is a powerful and ripe but structured wine. The smoky oak is evident for now but it should integrate nicely over the next few years. Full bodied for the vintage, with a long and toasty finish.
Drink 2026 – 2040

17+
Thomas Parker MW, JancisRobinson.com, October 2021

A red with currant and blueberry aromas and flavors and some citrus and vanilla. Medium body and creamy, integrated tannins. Shows finesse and depth for the vintage. One of the best from the appellation. Drinkable now, but much better in 2022

94
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, January 2020

The 2017 Leoville Poyferre is medium to deep garnet-purple colored. It offers up notions of baked plums and cassis with cedar chest, pencil lead, bay leaves, and smoked meats in the background. Medium-bodied, the palate delivers generous fruit and firm, chewy tannins with soft acidity and a firm, grippy finish.

94
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, June 2022

This has lower alcohol than usual, but doesn't sacrifice the mouthfeel. There's a succulent damson and cappuccino expression through the finish here, along with tautly constructed, bouncy tannins that are both expressive and powerful. It's one of the more rich and round wines in St-Juliens, as fits the house style. Extremely accomplished, it's powerful and will clearly age well. It's somewhere between 2014 and 2015 in quality, but not touching the majestic 2016. A success in the vintage, underlining again that St-Julien has had an extremely lucky 2017.
Drinking Window 2026 - 2038

95
Jane Anson, Decanter.com, April 2018

Very dark crimson – the darkest 2017 of this tasting. Rich, sweet ink. Definitely more ambitious than most 2017s. But still a little sinewy – not the fully rich all-holes-filled structure of a great vintage. But good for 2017.
Drink 2023-2033

16+
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, May 2018

Very dark crimson with black core. Gorgeous cassis intensity and purity on the nose and just a hint of oak sweetness and spice. Firm but really supple tannins, compact and deep but with a lightness of touch to let the fruit flow first. Mouth-watering and super-fresh. Long. 13.2%
Drink 2027-2042

17.5
Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2018

No frost here so a very healthy yield of 50 hl/ha. Made from 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. A deep colour with sweet, plush and ripe black cherry and damson on the nose, supported by plentiful roasted, toasty notes from oak. This is rich, fat and plump on the palate, with generous, opulent fruits and rich but refined tannins. This is very textural, with the plush tannins and sweet smoke of oak bold but still kept in balance with the fruit. Velveteen through to the long and ripe finish.

92+
Farr Vintners, April 2018

The fruit is sweet ripe the nose has richness depth of flavour. Mid generosity the tannins are fine the richness and sweetness underpinned by the fresher black fruits. It fills out at the back and finishes with a rich mix of cassis and black cherry. 2027-42

90/93
Derek Smedley MW, DerekSmedleyMW.co.uk, April 2018

Very attractive on the nose and palate, this is an indulgent wine with depth and succulence. The oak is fairly dominant and there is some dark extraction here, but there is no astringency. Fondant fruit and chocolate tones make this seem very forward but this is not the case because the tannins are powdery and persistent and they roll on for minutes. This is a superb wine with flair and control in equal measure.

18+
Matthew Jukes, Matthew Jukes' Blog, April 2018
Read more tasting notes...

The 2017 Léoville Poyferré has a very well defined bouquet with irresistible cranberry and crushed strawberry aromas, a lighter and more refined take on Poyferré with more mineralité than many recent vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly grainy tannin, a fine line of acidity, more black fruit than red intermixed with tar, smoke and cracked black pepper. There is just a touch of grittiness towards the finish but otherwise this is a wonderful Léoville Poyferré with plenty of character. Drink 2022-2045.

93
Neal Martin, vinous.com (March 2020), February 2020

The 2017 Léoville Poyferré was cropped at around 50hl/ha between 20 September and 6 October at 44hl/ha. It has a gorgeous bouquet that is very pure with scents of black cherry, cassis, cedar and a touch of graphite, all very focused and neatly entwined with the 85% new oak. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannin, crisp and focused, very harmonious with a touch of cedar and black pepper towards the finish. I appreciate the combination of weight and finesse here, a really quite enthralling valedictory Léoville Poyferré who is due to retire this coming July. Bon vin. 2021 - 2040

91/93
Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2018

Very tight and energetic finish to this young, new red with currant and blackberry character. Hints of crushed stones. Dense and four-square with a chewy tannin structure and a long finish. Very muscular. Serious encore to the 2016. Same level?

95/96
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2018

Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2017 Léoville Poyferré needs a little coaxing to reveal pretty scents of violets, Black Forest cake and blueberry preserves with hints of raspberry leaves, roses, cigar box and fragrant earth. Medium-bodied, the palate has a quiet intensity with loads of subtle layers and a well-poised frame of soft, fine-grained tannins, finishing long and refreshing. Drink: 2022-2045

94
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (March 2020), March 2020

Yields in 2017 were 44.34 hectoliters per hectare. The 2017 Léoville Poyferré is very deep purple-black in color with super intense notes of freshly crushed blackcurrants, wild blueberries and Sichuan pepper with hints of lavender, baking spices and wood smoke. The palate is medium-bodied, firm and grainy with restrained, understated fruit and a long, mineral-laced finish.

93/95
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (236), April 2018
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.