The 2005 vintage was surprisingly strong for Léoville-Poyferré, which I had tied with Mouton-Rothschild for second place just after Haut-Brion. The blend was 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, and 6% Cabernet Franc. Picking began on 26 September with the Merlot and finished on 8 October. The wine was aged in 75% new casks. The ripe blackcurrant and plum fruit showed some well-integrated notes of cedar, smoke, and earth that remain very youthful. The feel on the palate is substantial but very elegant. The tannins are firm and solid but not astringent. The overall impression is one of well-balanced power, and the finish was subtle and long.

Ruby red, toasted oak nose, enticing. It has held its line, and is delicious, generous, enticing, lip smacking. Has confidence, energy, damson and blackberry fruits, deepened by gourmet grilled vanilla bean and cappuccino creaminess. The quality and depth of fruit is astonishing - you can begin to drink this now (indeed it has inched open a little further since I last tasted 12 months ago), but it is going nowhere. Excellent stuff, one of the wines of the vintage. 80% new oak.

The 2005 Château Léoville Poyferré isn't the most powerful and opulent vintage of Poyferré, and while I think it checks in behind the 2000 and 2009 and 2010, it's nevertheless a beautiful, classic Poyferré relying more on finesse and elegance than overt power. That's not to say it's lightweight, and this medium to full-bodied, concentrated Saint-Julien offers terrific depth in its ripe currants, cherry jam, graphite, spring flower, and leafy tobacco-like aromas and flavors. Easily in its prime drink window, it has wonderful fruit, a fine thread of both tannins and acidity, and outstanding length. It will continue to drink brilliantly for two decades.

Far and away one of the most stunning wines of the tasting. While the rest of St-Julien is heavily closed and structured this wine is showing amazing approachability. Sweet blackberry and blueberry aromas are joined by a nice floral component and underscored by rich dark caramel earth and black licorice. On the palate iris and violet give way to dark flinty charcoal blackberry and cassis. Fantastic balance with a ripe acidity keeping it fresh and lively on the palate. Full bodied and rich this one will age beautifully for years.

The Château Léoville-Poyferré 2005 has a rich and opulent bouquet with lavish ripe black cherries and wild strawberry, just a touch of licorice rendering its even more extravagant. The palate is full-bodied with ripe, rounded tannin, touches of licorices and glycerin on the mid-palate with savory notes flourishing towards the finish. This is almost a brash, hubristic Saint Julien, one for those who prefer a more opulent style of Bordeaux while maintaining complexity. Chapeau Didier Cuvelier.

This wine's heady rush of flavor gave one taster goosebumps. She called it sexy. "Formidable." Other technical descriptions included "the shazam," "has zazz," and "unprintable. That's some serious s#¡†." At the en primeur tastings, this ap­peared to be chunky and superripe. Now it's massive, with dark extract and exotic spice, a sophisticated wine that ends on sweetness, bitter chocolate and dark berry fruit. With all the flash, it will give a lot of pleasure as a young wine, but it has the plump Poyferré terroir drive to sustain that pleasure for years to come.

Fresh, vibrant and juicy, with strong notes of tobacco, cedar, smoke, roasted fruits, espresso, thyme and currants. The wine is full-bodied and filled with ripe, crisp red berries, which come with a firm tannic grip that even with all this fruit, demands at least 4-5 more years to finish softening and rounding out. The wine is a blend of 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot. 94 Points Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/wine-tasting-note/?vintage=2005&wine=Chateau%20Leoville%20Poyferre

(94+ points) 2005 Leoville Poyferré originates from a great vintage. The wine is soft and creamy and almost begs to be consumed. It is quite a sweet mouthful, very nice but one could maybe ask for a little more structure to keep the ‘pancake house’ together. Will this very good example of Poyferré develop along the same lines as the 1990 and become even better as it matures and the elements melt together? Time will tell… - Ivar Bjurner

Léoville Poyferré’s dense ruby/purple 2005 is soft, round and juicy, with lots of blackcurrant fruit, plum and Asian spice. It is medium to full-bodied and, along with Léoville Las Cases and Saint-Pierre, probably one of the best St.-Juliens I tasted in this retrospective. It is surprisingly supple and accessible. Drink it over the next 15 or so years. - Robert M. Parker, Jr.

The 2005 Léoville Poyferré has quite a perfumed and minty bouquet, a common trait across many of the Left Bank '05s. Firm tannins frame plenty of tarry black fruit on the boldly styled palate. The 2005 is fresh but a little more tannic than the wines made nowadays. Dense and a little sinewy on the finish, this will certainly require decanting if broached now. -- Neal Martin

Dark ruby red in color with aromas of currant blackberry toasty oak and light cappuccino. Full-bodied with ultrafine tannins and a beautiful caressing aftertaste. Touches every part of the palate. Outstanding but slightly disappointing after such a great showing from barrel. Best after 2009. Tasted twice with consistent notes. 18915 cases made