Château Léoville Poyferré 2017

The blessing of a great terroir

As the devastating effects of frosts have a serious impact on the viticultural landscape of Bordeaux, Saint-Julien can give praise thanks to Saint Vincent, patron Saint of the vineyard workers, blessed by his protection from the worst of the exceptional frosts and safeguarded for the duration of the vintage.

2017, not too dissimilar to its companions of misfortune in sevens, started off on the wrong foot. A very dry winter and late severe spring frosts were then turned around with a warm pleasant summer.

This beautiful weather coupled with our unique terroir really raised the bar for our 2017 vintage. The result is a wine that is dense, marked with an exquisite aromatic expression, all wrapped in a vintage with surprising cellaring potential. An outsider, quite contrary to its reputation!

Press reviews

Decanter – Georgina Hindle : 96 (21.07.2022)

“Much more bramble aromas, still quite expressive, a little bit vegetal on the nose still, more direct and straight. Lovely hit of bright red and black fruits on the palate, fills the mouth with a soft juicines, this has more of a velvet texture – the tannins and juice integrated and balanced to give a good mouthfeel. Not massively complex but it’s elegant and charming, very linear and direct from start to finish. There’s a nice presence here, nice purity, a nice harmony here. Nice lift at the end too, bright and cheery. Totally charming with a backing of soft exotic spicing – black pepper, liquorice, clove and dusting of milk chocolate with the blackcurrant and black cherry. Menthol ending. Really lovely and surprising.”

The Wine Doctor – Chris Kissack : 94 (04.11.2021)

“A difficult vintage, although properties such as this, close to the protective environment of the Gironde, suffered much less with the frost. Aromatically this feels dense and structured, although I feel it is showing a little dusty evolution at the rim. It has a quite delightful nose, even if the oak is a more evident contributor here, the smoked blackcurrant and damson fruits swirled with ribbons of cedar, pencil shavings, white peach, white freesia and menthol, with a very elegant integration. The palate is medium-bodied and restrained in style, with a supple and svelte texture. At its heart is a fine layering of ripe tannins, perfume, menthol-infused fruit and white peach. Finely composed and svelte, I can see this evolving slowly over a decade or more to a state of ethereal elegance. Well done.”

JamesSuckling.com – James Suckling : 95 (02.03.2021)

“A red with currant and blueberry aromas and flavors and some citrus and vanilla. Medium body and creamy, integrated tannins. Shows finesse and depth for the vintage. One of the best from the appellation. Serious for the vintage. Drinkable now, but much better in 2022.”