Château Léoville-Las Cases Grand Vin de Leoville du Marquis de las Cases Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2005 (1500ml)

ADAM STROMFELD

This deserves 100 points scored that! Stew meat soft red fruit perfect balance and great acidity what a great finishing red!

Stewart Cameron

Still just a baby, 15 years old. Needs decant.

Bill Bender

Domaines Delon tasting via Spectrum Wine at Juniper & Ivy in Little Italy on Saturday. This '05 challenged for WOTN. Masculine, powerful dark fruit profile, graphite, smooth tannins. Young and lifted.

Nico J. Snyman

Tried beside a Cos d'Estournel '05, the Cos was worlds apart, on the nose this looks new world with all the coconut/extraction, the palate really isn't much better, the drying finish is about all that takes you to the old world, this is one that I think they went too far with, one dimensional right now, possibly it will come around with some time, but I'm not really too sure.

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

As good as this is tonight, it's a bit of a shame to drink it. It's beautiful, ripe, rich but the tannins still need some work. This wine will be amazing in 15-20 years. Dry blackberries, dark cherries, dark cherry liqueur, black plum skin, cooked strawberries, dark coco, minerals are so fine & elegant, suede leather, dry dark earth, decayed floral bouquet, black licorice anise, good acidity and a round plum dry finish.

Alex Jones

Marketing/Development Kunni/Westerly Wines

Very good but so young. Decanted for eight hours and tasted continuously. Tight and had a great dark fruit core but backwards for now.

Harley Carbery

Director of Wine, Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino and Delano Las Vegas

2005 Decadent, rich. Amazing length.

Tom Garland

3 hour decant(decent chunky/cloudy sediment). Checking in on the hyped 05 vintage! A phenomenal dark ruby garnet color with little signs of aging. On the nose: Nice nose of red fruit, graphite, floral, crushed rocks, cedar, menthol, and toasty vanilla. Taste: smooth, dry full body wine with black fruit, leather, cassis, anise, earth, and a bitter chocolate dry long finish. Still a little austere with some firm tannnis hanging on wanting a few more years to soften. A better score to come???Hopefully!!

Vanessa

In my mind, there’s no better way to celebrate another trip around the sun than with loved ones, watching the sunset, while sharing a delicious meal and wine pairing. This evening hits the mark! This wine is a 2nd growth Saint-Julien from the Médoc, left bank, region of Bordeaux, France. When I say 2nd growth, that means the Château from which this wine hails received the second highest quality designation as of part of the “1855 Classification” that took place during the Universal Expedition in Paris in 1855. This quality designation remains intact today despite the centuries that have passed. This wine is clear with a deep ruby hue and garnet rim variation. On the nose this wine has medium intensity(+) of developing aromas with a large focus on blackberry, fig, cassis, prune, potpourri, incense, anise, cedar, vanilla, clove, nutmeg, earth, leather, and tobacco. On the palate this wine is dry. It has medium acidity, a medium(+) body, medium alcohol, high tannins, and medium intensity in flavors consistent with the nose. The finish is long. Interestingly, the fermentation took place in various vessels, including those made from oak, steel, and concrete and then this wine aged in oak barriques (small oak vessels) until it was ready for bottling. It was also cellared at the Château from harvest until shipping in 2015. Château Léonville, Grand Vin de Léonville du Marquis de Las Cases, Saint-Julien, Médoc. Vintage 2005. ABV 13%. This wine has complexity, balance, structure, and length. It’s outstanding. I’m not surprised to see a 100-point rating from Wine Spectator. Thank you @Deke for the amazing Birthday selection!

GaryWEdwards

Comment later. Whoa! RP says "this dense ruby/purple wine has a stunningly pure bouquet of dark fruit, wet rocks, graphite, and subtle background toast/vanillin. Full-bodied, masculine, and very deep and concentrated, this titanic effort is at least 8-10 years away from its plateau of maturity." And I say this juicy berry is ready for duck, venison, and beef stew now.