2017 Chateau Leoville Las Cases

Chateau Leoville Las Cases is one of the larger classified estates in Bordeaux, with the Second Growth Saint-Julien property totalling 98 hectares. Winemaking is very traditional, using old oak vats for fermentation, and up to 90% new French oak for maturation. While the wines can look rather austere in their youth, from great years they can resemble some of the finest First Growth wines as they reach maturity.

The Chateau also produces a second wine, Le Petit Lion du Marquis de Las Cases (from 2009), which is not to be confused with Clos du Marquis, a wine that is always produced from a separate parcel and is considered a standalone brand.

Other Reviews....
The 2017 Léoville Las Cases, a blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon with 11% Cabernet Franc and 10% Merlot from 50- to 90-year-old vines, is deep garnet-purple in color and simply sings of crushed blackcurrants, wild blueberries and plum preserves with notions of wood smoke, cigar boxes, crushed rocks and beef drippings. Medium-bodied with wonderful intensity and vivacity, it gives a firm, fine-grained frame and a densely packed mid-palate, finishing long and earthy. This should age incredibly!
96-98 points
Lisa Perrotti-Brown - Wine Advocate #236 (April 2018)

This has the vintage’s fresh acidity, which does a wonderful job of driving the core of blueberry, black currant and blackberry fruit along. Light anise and graphite accents lend typicity, with a sleek mineral edge on the finish. Rock solid.—J.M.
93-96 points
Wine Spectator

This is very muscular with formed and bright tannins that give the wine super drive and length. The tannins build on the finish with a lovely integration of black fruits. Serious for the vintage.
96-97 points
James Suckling

This normally serious, complex wine has a smile on its face in this vintage. Even at this young stage the black fruits shine. It is certainly concentrated and dense, but the intense fruitiness cuts the tannins. This very fine wine will certainly age, although it is likely to be accessible sooner than usual.
95-97 points
Wine Enthusiast

The 2017 Léoville Las-Cases was picked between 15 September and 4 October, cropped at 37hl/ha and as usual, comes from the oldest vines that average around 50-years old. This year there is 13.28° alcohol. It is matured in 90% new oak and contains 7.5% vin de presse. It has a very clean and precise bouquet with blackberry, just a touch of blueberry, violet and a hint of bay leaf. This gains intensity with aeration but it is not as detailed as last year’s 2016. The palate is medium-bodied with more supple tannins than usual (that word is apt – there is nothing “soft” about this Saint-Julien). It has great depth with layers of black fruit laced with graphite and a pinch of white pepper, whilst it delivers fine salinity on the sappy finish. Excellent.
93-95 points
Neal Martin - Vinous

The 2017 Léoville Las Cases is remarkably elegant and polished for this typically brutish Saint-Julien. Persistence more than power is the key element that distinguishes the 2017 from most other vintages and most other Saint-Juliens as well. The classic Las Cases flavor profile is very much in evidence, but in a wine that is silky, nuanced and exceptionally polished. In 2017, Las Cases is truly magical, and one of the most complete wines of the Left Bank. In a word: sublime. Don't miss it. Tasted two times.
94-97 points
Antonio Galloni - Vinous

The flagship 2017 Léoville Las Cases is made from 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Merlot, still aging in 90% new barrels, and it’s unquestionably one of the greatest wines in this complex, far from homogenous vintage. Inky black colored with sensational richness in its black currants, scorched earth, graphite, and charcoal aromas and flavors, this blockbuster barrel sample is full-bodied, powerful, and concentrated. It has bright acidity, building tannin, and is going to need 5-7 years of cellaring to be drinkable.
95-97 points
Jeb Dunnuck