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Château La Louvière Red
Château La Louvière has many fascinating facets. The sumptuous architecture of the château building dates from the late 18th century, but winegrowing here goes back more than 700 years. The first vines were planted circa 1310, although modern winemaking dates from the 17th century and was handed down by able monks from the Carthusian monastery in Bordeaux, who had acquired considerable talent as viticulturists and winemakers. The people who produce the wine in the 21st century have inherited these time-honoured methods, adding just the right amount of innovation and modernity to make the utmost of the outstanding terroir. La Louvière's red wine has a dark colour and an elegant bouquet with delicate hints of oak...
Wine style
Rich and Powerful
Grape blend
Cabernet Sauvignon 64% / Merlot 30% / Cabernet Franc 3% / Petit Verdot 3%.
Weather
Winter was harsh (many days with frost) and spring rather chilly. There was a great deal of sunshine in 2010 and a long period of drought from 21 June to late September, which was favourable for ripening.
Tasting Comment
Appearance
Deep, dark colour.
Nose
Powerful bouquet of black and red fruit enhanced by a delicate smoky component. Toasty, vanilla, spicy aromas complete the rich, complex bouquet.
Mouth
Fine structure but, above all, well-balanced with enough body, volume and power to guarantee long ageing, even though it is already very attractive. This is a truly great wine that will be ideal with squab or any red meat.
Ratings and reviews
Well-balanced and delicate. Apogée : 2014-2025.
Rich and sweet on the nose. Just a little sweet and brutal. Falls away fast. But very luscious beforehand. Drink 2018-2030.
Intense, musky, spicy, peppery, and fruity nose with hints of blackcurrant, cherry, and jam. Good on the palate, showing considerable fruit. Full-boded and warm. The aftertaste is very fruity with creamy nuances. The wine coats the palate with tannin that is slightly rough, reminiscent of linen sheets. Good balance, grip, and length. Complexity: 13+/20. Pleasure provided: 16+/20.
This is the château's great benchmark vintage. Beautiful, dark, intense colour. Truly beautiful bouquet which I prefer right out of the bottle rather than decanted. It shows more finesse that way. Hints of liquorice. However, the palate of the decanted wine is much more appetising and broad-based. Rich and powerful with good acidity and complex aromas. The aftertaste has wonderful fine-grained tannin. Very beautiful, tasty finish. This is the finest La Louvière I have ever tasted. 2020-2040.
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2014 Edition - In 1985, this estate's red wine, not yet a "Pessac-Léognan" at the time, won one of three coups de cœur (i.e. designated a special favourite) in the Graves region in the first edition of the Guide Hachette. Others were to follow, and the label has hardly changed since. It portrays the beautiful château, whose design is attributed to Victor Louis. The elegance of the architecture is reflected in the wine. The bouquet features lots of toast oaky with vanilla and spicy nuances that nevertheless let the very ripe fruit (black fruit, plum and strawberry) shine brightly. There is also a touch of liquorice. The flavours are well-balanced and underpinned by tannin that is already smooth. The long, suave, generous aftertaste is reminiscent of jammy fruit, spice, chocolate and Virginia tobacco. This 2010 will reach its peak in approximately 2018 and hold for many years thereafter.
La Louvière's elegant, complex style once again shines through. Pure, well-focused fruit, minerality, a tightly-knit texture and delicious freshness.
Web only - Rather polished, with dark currant, blackberry and black cherry fruit melded to dark espresso and tobacco notes. Maintains a polished feel through the finish, showing good drive. Drink now through 2020. (James Molesworth)
Aromas of plum jam and cracked walnuts follow through to full body, with soft and velvety tannins that are integrated and pretty. Give this at least four or five years of bottle age. One of best La Louvière.
A bouquet dominated by oak, which releaseslovely, fruity aromas on aeration. Rich and well-balanced with good length, inthe purest La Louvière style.
Tasted at the Union de Grand Cru in London. The team chez La Louvière has produced a great 2010 that surpasses my expectations from barrel. This has a ripe, lifted nose of baked cherries, raspberry preserve and attractive, wet clay-like aromas that complement the fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with ripe tannins. The balance is very good here, the oak neatly folded into the fruit profile with great tension and vibrancy on the finish. Do not overlook this little gem. (Neal Martin)
Beautifully intense nose of smoky black fruit with aromas that follow through on the palate, which displays fine tannin and a long spicy aftertaste.
Lovely violet nose, characteristic of ripe vintages, elegant, pure, harmonious, soft, very well crafted and prepared, noble tannins, a little less body than some others.
Black fruit, blackberry, dense, tannic palate, some extraction, taut, lively, good fruit on the finish. Drink from 2015. Should last 18 years. (Jacques Dupont)
The La Louviere is a little taciturn on the nose but there are attractive minerally notes behind those broody dark berried fruits. The palate is smooth and silky on the entry, very sensual for La Louviere with saturated tannins towards the finish. It came across as a little subdued at the moment but hopefully it should develop nicely after bottling. Tasted April 2011. (Neal Martin)
Dark and winey, with lots of crushed plum, anise and black currant nicely melded with dark tobacco and cocoa notes. This has some toast to soak up, but there's ample flesh. (James Molesworth)
Very dark crimson. Light, slightly green nose. Then sweet start to the palate, much less obvious tannin than most. Distinctive. A comfortable pair of old slippers..? No great persistence. But very well mannered. A bit astringent on the finish for now but very well made. Drink 2020 - 2035.
Powerful and concentrated, with wood dominant. It's hard to find the fruit through the planks, although the wine does have the weight to give it promise for the future. (Roger Voss)
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Well extracted ripe fruit, already some fragrance on the nose and typical La Louvière structure and tannins for the future. Drink 2015-25.
Consumption period
2013 - 2025
Our suggestions
White meats
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Cheese |
Red meats
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Game
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Ground
Surface
46.00 ha
Soil
Deep gravel
Winemaking
Grape harvest
By hand with small deep crates
Others
Graft stock
101.14 - Riparia gloire - 3309
Plant food
Traditional, limited impact
Plant density
8,500 vines per hectare
Wine average age
26 years
Grape variety
Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot
Pruning type
Double Guyot with debudding
Fermentation
In stainless-steel temperature-controlled tanks with patented cap-breaking system and concrete tanks with pigeage
Fermentation temperature
28 to 30 °C
Malolactic
Yes
Wine maturing
For 12 months in oak barrels (40-50 % new) with racking
Wine montage
Egg white
Maturing potential
Subject to vintage, expressive between 3 and 5 years, can age 15 to 30 years.
Oenologist consultant
Michel ROLLAND and Mikaël LAIZET.
Recipes
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