Château Pichon-Lalande 1996, Pauillac 2em Cru Classé (4)

Château Pichon-Lalande 1996
Pauillac 2em Cru Classé
(4 lightly scuffed labels)
4 bottles

"The 1996 Pichon-Lalande has long been one of the high points of this Pauillac estate and now at 20 years of age it is firing on all cylinders. You cannot have any complaints against the nose: intense blackberry, cedar and graphite, all beautifully delineated, demand your attention. The palate offers exquisite balance, refined and yet intense, the Cabernet Sauvignon clearly in the driving seat but assisted by the Merlot that imparts the crucial fleshy texture on the finish. Red berry fruit, cigar box, mint, juniper berries ... this is a complex and riveting Pauillac wine that is going to cruise along its drinking plateau for many years. This is outstanding." (96pts Neal Martin, Wine Advocate #227, Oct 2016)