Les Tourelles de Pichon Baron 2024

Critic scores

• James Suckling93-94
• Vinous90-92

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

"From the outset, Les Tourelles signals where it comes from and who it is. It is unmistakably at home at Pichon Baron, with nuances of mint and dark berries. On the palate, harmony is evident from the very beginning. This is a performance worth noting. The wine has barely crossed the starting line before displaying its clarity and balance. The juicy, fleshy tannins are in tune with refreshing tension. A wine that shines through its sapidity and its ability to unite crunchy vigour with energy. Enjoy it young or with some age. Fruity finish of good length." Yves Beck

Blend of the 2024 vintage

Ageing

70% in wine barrels, 30% in new barrels, for 12 months

Terroir

Overlooking the Latour vineyard, the 73 ha of the Domaine de Pichon Baron lie on gravel soils of very high quality. This unique land, low in nutrients and without excess water, sparingly feeds old vines whose grape production is intentionally small but of exceptional nobility. This terroir is capable of producing extraordinary wines, which the estate sets out to do with excellence and consistency, in keeping with the original history of the vineyard. Planted with 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, the extensive Pichon Baron vineyard has been the subject of a meticulous division into plots. The great 40 ha terroir of the Pichon Baron knoll is devoted solely to the production of the Grand Vin and today accounts for the greater part of its blend.