Les Griffons de Pichon Baron 2025

Tasting notes and recommendations for Les Griffons de Pichon Baron 2025

Tasting

Appearance
This wine reveals an intense, brilliant ruby-red color.

Nose
The aromatic bouquet is particularly generous, offering lovely freshness.

Palate
From the very first sip, this wine shows breadth, energy, and a fine structure. The texture is fleshy and juicy, releasing aromas of blackberry, cherry, and sweet spices, all enhanced by delicate woody notes. The overall profile displays perfectly controlled power, remarkable balance, and very promising tannins.

Food and wine pairings
This cuvée pairs beautifully with roasted or grilled red meats such as rib steak or lamb chops. It will also enhance rich dishes in sauce, game such as wild boar or venison, as well as recipes featuring mushrooms or truffles. For cheese, opt for aged hard varieties such as Comté, Parmesan, or mature Cheddar.

Serving and cellaring
This wine reveals its full potential when served at around 15.5 °C. This vintage has excellent aging potential and can be cellared until around 2045.

The elegance and power of a great Pauillac

The estate
Founded in 1694 following the marriage of Thérèse de Rauzan and Baron Jacques Pichon de Longueville, the Château Pichon Baron is an iconic property of the Bordeaux region. This prestigious estate extends over 75 hectares in the heart of the Médoc. Classified as a Second Grand Cru in 1855, it has belonged to the AXA Millésimes group since 1987. Today, under the technical direction of Pierre Montégut, the estate combines an exceptional historical heritage with modern and sustainable viticultural practices to produce wines of remarkable quality.

The vineyard
Located on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, this terroir of the Pauillac appellation benefits from a moderate maritime climate. The vines, averaging 35 years of age and planted at a high density of 9,600 vines per hectare, thrive on soils composed of Quaternary gravel, large pebbles, and sand. This rolling landscape ensures optimal natural drainage. The estate favors an environmentally respectful approach, incorporating cover crops and the use of natural compost to preserve biodiversity and soil health.

The vintage
The year 2025 began with a rather dry and moderately mild winter, leading to early budbreak with limited growth, without any frost episodes. The mild but humid spring increased the risk of mildew before quickly giving way to a hot and dry summer climate. At the end of May, flowering occurred rapidly and very evenly. After a cooler, slightly rainy period at the end of July that allowed the vines to recover, veraison began on July 30. A new heatwave in mid-August accelerated ripening, followed by beneficial rains in early September. Fine weather in mid-September enabled very early, high-quality harvests, spread over 16 days, just before the rainfall of September 20.

Winemaking and aging
The berries undergo extremely rigorous sorting during harvest, in the winery, and then via an optical system, removing 3 to 5% of the crop to retain only the finest fruit. Vatting is carried out by gravity. Vinification includes bioprotection as well as the use of indigenous yeasts for low-temperature fermentations. Extraction is gentle, with light pump-overs and rack-and-return operations. Finally, the wine is aged for 15 months in barrels, equally divided between new oak and one-wine barrels.

Grape varieties
The blend of Les Griffons de Pichon Baron 2025 consists of 62% Merlot, 34% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Cabernet Franc.