Tasting Notes
Vinous 93+
The 2008 Léoville Barton has a lovely, heart-warming bouquet of ripe blackberry and cedar, touches of graphite, precise and supremely well focused. Classic Barton. The palate is medium-bodied, fresh and lively with impressive density; structured with a firm backbone on the graphite-tinged and tensile finish that suggests that it deserves another 3-4 years in bottle. Excellent. (Tasted at BI Wine & Spirit’s annual 10-Year On tasting.)
Anticipated maturity: 2022-2045
Robert Parker 91
Tasted ex-chateau and single blind in Southwold. The Leoville Barton 2008 has a very ripe, opulent bouquet that reminded me of Poyferre! It has impressive definition and purity; very good lift but there is a lot of oak to be subsumed. The palate is medium-bodied with a succulent, velvety entry that disguises its serious tannic backbone. It is very stylish and suave, although there is just a touch of dryness towards the finish. I think it will improve with another decade on the clock. Tasted January 2012.