WTN: 2003 Leoville-Barton

2003 Chateau Leoville-Barton Saint-Julien 13.0%
After Monday night's 2003 Pauillac, that didn't perform up to the standard expected from a hectare adjoining Mouton, last night I decided to follow up with an unquestionably good 2003. Lovely aromas of blackberry, graphite, vanilla, tobacco and smoked meats. Chocolate joins the party in the mouth, with decent acidity for the vintage. Tannins on the lighter side and structure/mid-palate not quite as chunky as I would have hoped. After food, the acidity recedes a bit (would have liked a touch more) but the tannins take up the slack by becoming more prominent. Good stuff. Still a baby, but already open for business. 2003s seem to have become open much faster than cooler vintages, though this one still has at least a decade of improvement ahead of it.

Nice to see this TN, Oswaldo, thanks for posting it. The '89 Leoville-Barton was the first wine I ever bought on futures and since then I've always had some on hand and I'd been wondering about the '03.

Cool. Maybe I can try a couple of my 2003s!

Thanx for the read on this, Oswaldo. LB is one of my favorite Bdx wines. Year in and year out, good quality, and generally, in the scheme of things, reasonable prices (especially some of the older ones at auction). I scored a bunch of the 03s recently at a killer price (< $90), but haven't tried one. Good to know they are open for business.

I keep remembering Michel Lafarge telling a visitor in 2005 that he didn't think his 2003s would ever shut down. That suggests that higher acidity plays a counter role in the poorly understood phenomenon of closing, particularly reds...

I keep remembering Michel Lafarge telling a visitor in 2005 that he didn't think his 2003s would ever shut down. That suggests that higher acidity plays a counter role in the poorly understood phenomenon of closing, particularly reds...

Interesting... so.. more acidity, less likely to shut down? Good.. cuz I like my wines with acidity.. whites especially, but reds too. Always more `refreshing', for lack of a better term. Interesting theory, if it is a theory.

I keep remembering Michel Lafarge telling a visitor in 2005 that he didn't think his 2003s would ever shut down. That suggests that higher acidity plays a counter role in the poorly understood phenomenon of closing, particularly reds...

Interesting... so.. more acidity, less likely to shut down? Good.. cuz I like my wines with acidity.. whites especially, but reds too. Always more `refreshing', for lack of a better term. Interesting theory, if it is a theory.

Alas, the other way round: 2003s were less acid, therefore less likely to shut down. Since acidity is positively correlated with longevity, it makes some sense that it would also delay blooming.

I keep remembering Michel Lafarge telling a visitor in 2005 that he didn't think his 2003s would ever shut down. That suggests that higher acidity plays a counter role in the poorly understood phenomenon of closing, particularly reds...

Interesting... so.. more acidity, less likely to shut down? Good.. cuz I like my wines with acidity.. whites especially, but reds too. Always more `refreshing', for lack of a better term. Interesting theory, if it is a theory.

Alas, the other way round: 2003s were less acid, therefore less likely to shut down. Since acidity is positively correlated with longevity, it makes some sense that it would also delay blooming.

I missed the `counter' in your quote.. .... damn... thanx for the clarification. So.. acidity, still good.. trying to salvage my dignity here!!

Acidity is definitely good! So much so that I have come to see the acid/sweet balance as the most important single aspect in a wine...

Though many 03s were lower in acid, the silver lining may earlier accessibility, when many 01s and 02s (and surely 00s) are still be closed, possibly because they were higher in acid. Some of the "lesser" 03s (Meyney, Potensac, Aiguilhe, etc.) started to open about two years ago and must be doing quite well right now.

This tasting note shocks me. I liked this wine a whole lot in 2006, but I never expect a Leoville Barton to be ready to drink so early or to have such a short (10+ year) window of development. The 1990 (also a hot year) still isn't quite ready in my book.

I'll have to keep an eye on my 2003s if they are developing this fast. I'm trying the Montrose next month and I'll post a note.

I had another 03 LB last year and it was lovely too so, given your experience in 06, it's been open (enough) for at least three years, most unusual.

Definitely an odd vintage, so worth checking in rather than relying on our usual Bdx guidelines. Look forward to your note on the Montrose.

Thanks for the note on this, another reminder that I should open some of my 2003s. The problem is, I have been saying that to myself for at least a year, and I occasionally say it regarding my 1995s, 1996s and 2001s as well.