Garden/backyard of Leoville Las Cases - April 2017
Leoville Las Cases' offices and cellars are located on the left side of "Route des Chateaux" after you pass the village of St. Julien on your way to Pauillac. In the same complex of buildings, but on the right, you see the offices of Léoville Poyferré. Longer down the road on the right, there's a big sign over the big wall with Leoville Las Cases "written" on it. Behind this wall, you have the vineyard of Leoville Las Cases.
Leoville Las Cases has a 98-hectare vineyard, planted with 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot. The soil here is primarily composed of gravel, with some areas mixed with sand on a clay or sandy clay bed. Due to the nearby Gironde river, frost is a very rare guest here. This extremely advantageous location creates an excellent microclimate.
Leoville-Las-Cases is a powerful and tightly structured wine with remarkable complexity and length. It often gives 1. Growths in Bordeaux run for its money.
I have a gap in my tasting notes for the vintages from 2022 to 2024 because I haven't had the chance to visit the property in the past five years. I plan to catch up on this during my next visit to Bordeaux in late autumn 2025.
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2021 Leoville Las Cases (barrel sample) 95-96p
Tasted in September 2022. 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet Franc. 13.2% alcohol. This wine was elegant and refined, with notes of red fruit and tobacco on the nose, exhibiting great complexity and structure. It was rich and very long on the palate, vibrant, and possessed great depth. Long, persistent finish. Impressive effort for the vintage.
2020 Leoville Las Cases (barrel sample) 99p
Tasted in May 2021. 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, and 8% Merlot. 13.68% alcohol. Sophisticated and classy on the nose, very distinct with black cherries, black tea, and tobacco leaf. Spectacular on the mid-palate with a silky texture, yet the wine was very concentrated, with great depth, firm structure, extraordinary complexity, and a mega-long finish. It's incredible to taste a wine of great concentration while it's so silky in texture.
2018 Leoville Las Cases (barrel sample) 99p
Tasted in April 2019. 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, and 9% Cabernet Franc. 14.5% alcohol. This wine appeared very concentrated and intense, full of black cherry fruit, sleek and silky, with a hint of tannin, and was very sophisticated and utterly complex. Perfect balance. This wine wasn't, surprisingly, a kind of bulldozer, merely an athletic man moving like a ballerina.
2017 Leoville Las Cases (barrel sample) 98+p
Tasted in April 2018. This wine was elegant and refined, with great complexity and structure, rich and lingering on the palate, offering great depth and a long, persistent finish. Impressive effort for the vintage.
2016 Leoville Las Cases (barrel sample) 98+p
Tasted in April 2017. 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, and 11% Cabernet Franc. Twin brother of the 2015 vintage, but more distinguished and with more elegance. Bull's eye once again!
2015 Leoville Las Cases 98-99p
Tasted twice - last time in April 2018. 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, and 9% Cabernet Franc. Monster wine here, a fabulous nose of dark berries, extremely concentrated, deep and long on the palate, remarkable acidity, sophisticated, and with a mega, mega long finish. Bull's eye!
2014 Leoville Las Cases 95-96p
Tasted in April 2017. It's very impressive for the vintage, powerful and precise, with great complexity and richness, and a sublime finish.
2012 Leoville Las Cases 94p
Tasted three times - last time in June 2025. Consistent notes. Captivating black fruit aroma on the nose and polished, tasty fruit on the palate. Precise and focused, great complexity and richness, sublime finish. Perfect restaurant wine. It'll age well.
2004 Leoville Las Cases 94p
Tasted in September 2017. Aromatic and complex, with excellent structure and a very long finish. Splendid balance. Very stylish wine. A keeper.
2003 Leoville Las Cases 94p
Tasted in September 2017. I rate this wine higher than in 2001. There is no sign of heated fruit here, despite excessively high temperatures (well over 40 degrees C in August). The yield was half of the normal for the property. Quite intense with well-integrated fruit and tannin, a delicate sweetness of fruit, and splendid complexity. Long aftertaste. At its peak now.
2001 Leoville Las Cases 93p
Tasted twice - last time in June 2025. Consistent notes. This wine can't challenge a one-year-younger brother. Quite developed, a bit tight and tannic, some cigar tones, earthy flavors, fine acidity, and a long, firm finish. It could have had some more fruit sweetness. This was in September 2017. Similar appearance in June 2025.
2000 Leoville Las Cases 98-99p
Tasted three times - last time in June 2025. Consistent notes. It's been 14 years since my previous tasting notes on this wine, and to be frank, it hasn't changed that much. In April 2003, I asked myself if this wine could match a First Growth's wine. It almost did! With such richness of nuances, concentration, depth, and length, this wine could conquer the whole world. A masterpiece that will last 30-40 years in the cellar. Jean-Hubert Delon continues in the most exemplary way his father's eminent wine work. Then, in September 2017, it was still as young as ever, a blockbuster wine with tons of ripe fruit and ripe tannin. Still breathtaking in June 2025! This wine can keep forever!!
1996 Leoville Las Cases 96p
Tasted twice - last time in June 2025. A classic wine for the property. It is powerful, with excellent length, structure, bright acidity, great complexity, and a firm, fruity finish. This wine showcases Cabernet Sauvignon beautifully. It is very stylish and has long-lasting potential.
1995 Leoville Las Cases 95+p
Tasted in June 2025. This wine presents an exciting nose with notes of cassis, tobacco, and graphite. On the palate, it is lively, juicy, and vibrant, featuring well-integrated tannins, a fine midpalate, and a persistent finish. It's another high-quality classic wine from this property.
1991 Leoville Las Cases 92p
Tasted in June 2025. Dusty blackcurrants on the nose, nice backbone, nicely constructed, tasty, soft ripe fruit, and smooth finish. This wine is a success, having not been affected by the devastating frost that hit Bordeaux in 1991.
1989 Leoville Las Cases 93p
Tasted twice - last time in June 2025. Consistent notes. Well-preserved wine, strong with the apparent sweetness of fruit, well-balanced, long on the palate with a firm finish. Perfect to drink now and in the next 10 years.
1986 Leoville Las Cases 97+p
Tasted in June 2025. This is a very powerful wine with strong notes of blackcurrants, black winter truffles, tobacco, and leather. It is vibrant and has a strong backbone, great depth and length, a remarkable midpalate, and is sophisticated with a memorably long finish.
1985 Leoville Las Cases 94-95p
Tasted twice - last time in June 2025. Consistent notes. Strong and powerful, fine acidity, truffles, fine-grained tannin, great balance, depth, and finish. Despite 30 years on its birth certificate, this wine was as fresh as ever and had at least 10-15 more years to go. This was in November 2015. In June 2025, it continued to make strides nicely with elegance and finesse.
1971 Leoville Las Cases 94-95p
Tasted in October 2019. Toffee nose, a little bit chemical to begin with, and acidity much forward, long on the palate, detailed, great complexity, a lot of nuances, rich. After 15 minutes in the glass, it gained more freshness and length. Formidable wine.
1945 Leoville Las Cases 95-96p
Tasted in May 2025. This wine has aged remarkably well for an 80-year-old. It is sophisticated on the nose with notes of truffles and exquisite on the palate, displaying great structure, depth, and length. Vibrant and refined, it offers a splendid mid-palate experience and a long finish. This is a fabulous wine.