2015 Château Léoville-Poyferré

The 2015 Léoville Poyferré is a delightful Saint-Julien that instantly has you smitten. Vivacious red fruit, briary and orange pith aromas unfold in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with svelte tannins (like before). It is very harmonious and poised with a finish that just sashays along without a care in the world. Wonderful. Tasted at the 2015 Ten-Year-On tasting at Bordeaux Index.

Cumin, smoked cinnamon, blackberry and cassis, with a slate scrape of tannins, this conveys plenty of estate signature and rises above shortcomings of 2015 in this corner of the region. You can find more concentrated Poyferrés in the estate's back vintages, but that makes it a great moment to begin drinking. Remarkably similar to the last time I tasted this two years ago, suggesting that this is very much in peak drinking, and will continue to deliver over the next decade at least. Harvest September 24 to October 10. 80% new oak for ageing.

The 2015 Léoville-Poyferré has more fruit intensity and swagger on the nose compared to the previous vintage with luxuriant red berry fruit, orange blossom and vanilla pod. The oak is not becoming more assimilated. The palate is medium-bodied with svelte tannins, sweet and sensual, maybe it does not quite possess the tension of the 2014, yet there is such weight and harmony on the finish that this is nigh impossible to resist. Gorgeous. Tasted at the Léoville-Poyferré vertical at the château with Sara Lecompte Cuvelier.