Pichon Baron

Pichon BaronThe 1999 Pichon Baron now has better precision and focus than the 1998. The nose of blackberry, graphite and smoke is not intense but gains vigor with continued aeration. The palate is medium bodied with supple tannin and a little brine on the entry, and quite saline, showing moderate depth. It just feels a bit foursquare toward the finish. It will not improve further, so drink over the next five or six years. Neal Martin

austere and very tightly wound finale

hints of blood orange and white pepper on the aftertaste

This newest release

with a level of translucent energy that is alluring

with an elegantly textural attack and a creamy core of fruit that's underpinned by a bright but nicely integrated spine of acidity

One of my favorite wines

these represent the pinnacle of Cote Rotie—albeit in very different styles

The grapes fermented in open wooden vats and carried out the malolactic fermentation in oak barrels

Neither the 1995 nor 1996 performed as well as they had in the past

Opaque purple-colored

If you want to drool over sensational fruit

74 ha parcel of 35+ year old vines)