Alex Shaw, JJ Buckley, February 2013

59% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 6% petit verdot and 5% cabernet franc. Dark and imposing, with notes of blackberry, dark chocolate and wet earth on a slightly subdued nose. A class St.Julien, the 2010 LeovillePoyferre displays much of the power of Pauillac to the north while still displaying much of the elegance of Margaux to the south. Silky and almost impossibly supple for a young Bordeaux, the dark purple fruit is slightly subdued, but with beautifully integrated tannins and nicely balanced acidity, this is a true beauty in the making. Lay it down until 2020 and drink over the next 3-4 decades.

95 points,

James Suckling, jamessuckling.com, February 2013

Wow. Very intense and aromatic nose with crushed currants and blueberries with hints of nuts and dried flowers. Full body, with very refined tannins and a lovely undercurrent of fruit. Balanced and juicy. Better in 2018.

Jancis Robinson, April 2011

Very concentrated and luscious looking. Exceptionally deep crimson. Very fine and sophisticated on the nose. Both concentration and lift but then perhaps just a bit too concentrated on the palate? Certainly very attention grabbing with lots of very ripe, very dry fruit. Lustrous. With some welcoming appeal. Pure, luscious Médoc Cabernet. Very long and vibrant. 17.5 out of 20.

93 -96 points,

Jeff Leve, TheWineCellarInsider.com, April 2011

Leoville Poyferre From an assemblage of 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot, along with 3% Cabernet Franc, this wine reached 14% alcohol. Even at this degree of alcohol, there is no feeling of heat. Smoke, earth, jammy dark berries and cassis scents produce the aromatics. This fresh, chocolate covered cassis filled wine is big and almost brawny in style. Its beefy tannins and low pH combine freshness and power which are made better by the long cassis filled, powerful finish. According to Didier Cuvelier, 2010 reminds him of 2005. I see his point. B ut for me, 2010 is more powerful, while 2005 offers more elegance and charm.

95 points,

Neal Martin's Wine Journal, November 2012

Tasted at the Union de Grand Cru in London. The Leoville Poyferre has an intense bouquet with blackberry, dark plum, violet and a touch of bay leaf - almost Margaux like in perfume - heady and opulent and not far removed from the 2009. The palate is full-bodied with succulent ripe black fruit laced with spice box and white pepper. It is very harmonious, crescendos to a vibrant, shimmering finish surfeit with minerality. Superb.

98 points,

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, March 2013

The wine out distances both Leoville Las Cases and Leoville Barton, but all three of them are compelling efforts. Full-bodied, dense purple in color, with floral notes intermixed with blackberries, cassis, graphite and spring flowers, this full-bodied, legendary effort is long and opulent, with wonderfully abundant yet sweet tannin, a skyscraper-like mid-palate and a thrilling, nearly one-minute finish. This spectacular effort from Poyferre that should drink well for 30+ years. 98+

90 -93 points,

Stephen Tanzer's IWC, June 2011

Opaque inky-purple. Fruit-driven aromas of plum jam, smoky black cherry and chocolate-covered blackcurrant. Then increasingly austere and tough on the palate, with black fruit flavors hidden beneath a thick coating of oak. The long finish features clove, vanilla and underbrush nuances. This massive Leoville Poyferre will need plenty of time to shed its tannic cloak, but appears to possess enough fruit beneath its oaky veneer.

98 points,

Wine Enthusiast, February 2013

A wine of architectural strength and classical proportions, this has straight lines that mark the packed, concentrated fruits, which are sustained by its tannins. This is certainly the best wine that Léoville-Poyferré has produced, sumptuous while so finely structured.

92 -95 points,

Wine Spectator, April 2011

This is big, with layers of succulent blackberry, cassis and linzer torte pushed by sweet spice and a long, graphite finish. Shows lots of smoky, fleshy power, but really sails along.

About Winery

In the reign of Louis XIII, in 1638, a certain Jean de Moytié, Counsellor of the Bordeaux parliament and a noble bourgeois of the town, owned a beautifully sloped gravelly vineyard near the River. This place, as was the tradition, was named after its owner and thus became the "Mont-Moytié."

Historically, the production of Mont-Moytié was among the first Médoc wines, along with the "Château de Margaux", the "Tour de Saint-Lambert" or the "Château de La Fitte" in Pauillac and the "Château de Calon", in Saint-Estèphe, which were all established before the period of civil war known as La Fronde (1648-1653.)
The domain remains part of the Maison de Moytié for a century, and then falls to the Maison de Gascq by marriage.

Full of ambition for his property, Alexandre de Gascq renamed Mont-Moytié as Léoville (or Lionville), after his first estate, "a model property" located on the right bank.
So Alexandre de Gascq was aiming to make Léoville a model estate, producing the best Médoc wine. He planted smaller grape varieties, trellising the rows with pinewood. He had winemaking receptacles built in his new cellar and the free- run wine was aged in barrels disinfected with sulphur, and then racked.

In 1840 an equitable division of both the vineyard and land was agreed upon. The label Léoville-D'Abadie had already been replaced by that of the Baron de Poyferré. The buildings of Château Léoville Poyferré and Léoville Lascase were divided into two parts as they are today, a unique situation in the Médoc and indeed in the Bordeaux area.

The arrival of Didier CUVELIER at the head of the property in 1979, hailed a new era for the success of the domain and the restoration of Léoville Poyferré to its rightful rank among the great Médoc wines.

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