Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2024

Critic scores

• Vinous91-93
• Jeb Dunnuck91-93
• Decanter93
• Wine Advocate89-91

The 2024 vintage in Pauillac

Vintage benchmark: 87/100 (appellation benchmark, not a score for this wine)

Vintage character: A rainy spring and a difficult flowering reduced the crop; the dry October saved fine, light, easy-drinking wines.

Overall reading of the year’s season across Pauillac. An estate can depart from it sharply, in frost or hail years, where two neighbours did not make the same vintage. What this particular wine actually gave is on its technical sheet and in the scores above.

Tasting

Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2024 is characterized by a very high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (78%), which once again defines the identity of the terroir and the finesse of its expression. This 2024 vintage embodies the elegance of the year, with excellent fruit maturity and remarkable freshness. Its garnet color precedes an expressive nose of ripe black fruits, complemented by subtle hints of violets. On the palate, the attack is broad and enveloping, the texture is silky, and the tannins are fine. The overall balance offers a harmonious blend of structure, velvety texture, and vibrancy. True to the estate's style, this refined wine will be accessible in its youth while having great aging potential.

Blend of the 2024 vintage

Figures from the 2024 sheet

• 38 hl/haYield
• 40 yrsVine age

Winemaking

Harvesting was carried out manually from September 25th to October 8th. Harvest: from September 25th to October 8th, 2024 - Yield: 38 hl/ha.

Ageing

Aging in French oak barrels (fine grain), 70 % of which are new.

Terroir

Grand-Puy-Lacoste enjoys an exceptional terroir. The soil is made up of gravels, that is to say alluvial stones that provide excellent drainage. The distinctive character of the Médoc soil is part of a history going back two million years, for the gravels are geological witnesses of the Quaternary era. These stones, brought down from the Pyrenees and carried by the Garonne, were deposited over time on the banks of the Gironde, its estuary. Today the layers, of varying depth, are made up of gravel mixed with sand and a little clay. This gravelly soil has the advantage of retaining heat and returning it to the vine at night, which eliminates excessive temperature swings and encourages the harmonious ripening of the bunches.