Clos du Marquis 2012 750ml

Wine Advocate #227, Oct 29, 2016, by Neal Martin
The 2012 Clos du Marquis has a very intense bouquet, the more fruit-driven of all the Saint Julien 2012s with layers of black cherries and cranberry fruit, an undercurrent of autumn leaves and cigar box. The palate is medium-bodied with fine definition: smooth and very harmonious, quite intense on the entry and yet without that long sustain on the finish. That does not matter too much, because what comes before is very precise and pure, the class of the terroir evident from start to finish.

Clos du Marquis is the second label of Chateau Leoville Las Cases.
During the French Revolution, Marquis de Las Cases Beauvoir was forced to flee France and as a consequence the Leoville estate was broken up. This gave birth to the 3 separate Chateaux Leoville Barton, Leoville Las Cases and Leoville Poyferre.
Château Léoville LasCases is one of the largest and oldest classified growths in the Médoc. It is the largest of the 3 Léoville properties and now without doubt the leading estate in St-Julien.
Léoville Las Cases's 97 hectares of vineyards are superbly sited on gravelly-clay soils with the largest plot being surrounded by a stone wall and stretching between the village of St-Julien and Château Latour. The wine is a Cabernet Sauvignon dominated blend (65%), and is matured in oak barriques (70-80% new) for 18 months. Léoville Las Cases produces arguably the most exotically perfumed wine in the Médoc and this can be partially attributed to the must being fermented at lower than average temperatures, which leads to its youthful aromatic richness being retained. On the palate it is powerful and concentrated and marvellously well-balanced.
Léoville Las Cases is a 2ème Cru Classé in name but produces 1er Cru Classé quality wines.

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