Wine legends

Pauillac 2CC, Bordeaux, France

Pichon Comtesse de Lalande 1982

a legend because…

1982 was a splendid vintage, and many châteaux made terrific wines. Yet initial reactions were mixed. Some experts found a resemblance to opulent wines from Napa, and were suspicious of the style, since they were used to more austere and tannic clarets. Yet the 1982 Pichon Lalande has proved to be a near-perfect expression of this exuberant vintage, and it has confounded the sceptics by going the distance.

Looking back

Pichon’s modern era began in 1925, when the estate was sold to the Miailhe family. One family member, May-Eliane de Lencquesaing, secured a majority holding in 1978. The previous decades had been lean ones for the property and the château itself was in a dilapidated state. The success of fine vintages, beginning with 1982, allowed her to invest heavily, with about £7 million spent on renovations. She lived at the property and ran it with an iron hand up to 2006, when she sold it to Roederer Champagne.

The vintage

Jean-Jacques Godin was estate manager since 1975, and would have overseen this vintage. A hot, dry summer allowed the grapes to reach perfect ripeness, with generous yields. Harvest began in mid-September in sunny weather, and subsequent rain did not diminish the quality of the Cabernets yet to be picked. The richness of the wines did lead to some problems during fermentation, such as high volatile acidity, but the best wines were well made, balanced and opulent.

The terroir

Pichon Lalande is a large property with some 89ha under vine, although only 70ha were in production in 1982. There has always been a fairly high proportion of Merlot, around 30%, which contributes to the wine’s sumptuous texture. The vineyards are dispersed, and most of those surrounding the château belong to Latour. The Pichon vines cross the border into St-Julien, where 11ha are planted, although just 1ha bears the appellation – the château has long been permitted to incorporate the St-Julien wine into its Pauillac wines. Soil is gravel over clay, with a deeper subsoil of sandstone, limestone and marl.

The wine

The hand-harvested grapes did not receive a cold soak, and selected yeasts were added to provoke fermentation. This was the first year in which temperature control was installed for fermentation. The wine was aged for about 18 months in 50%-60% new oak, with regular rackings, egg-white fining and filtration before bottling. In short, a conventional Médoc winemaking regime, allowing the superb terroir and ripe grapes to speak unhindered.

The reaction

In 2001, Michael Broadbent revelled in the wine: ‘Prettily coloured, well upholstered, delectable, sweetness and fruit.’ In 2009, Robert Parker tasted the wine in its prime: ‘One of the monumental wines of the last century. It was a sprinter out of the gate, which gave rise to questions about how quickly it would begin its decline. However, at age 27, it retains all its glossy, flamboyant cassis fruit, chocolatey, berry jam-like notes, and earthy, foresty flavours.’

Jane Anson in 2016 noted: ‘Just an incredible, stunning wine that hit me right from the very first moment and held its grip with the most confident of touches. Such intensity on the nose, with blueberry, blackcurrant and spicy mint, this is knockyour-socks-off great.’

A year later, Antonio Galloni was equally enthusiastic: ‘Utterly profound from the very first taste. Powerful and explosive, with seemingly endless layers of flavour. Vivid, intensely aromatic and seamless, the 1982 has enough pedigree and depth to drink well for at least several decades. What a wine!’