Description
Classified as a fifth growth in the 1855 Bordeaux Classification, the Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant grand vin is known for its velvety texture and cigar box and cassis aromas.
The vineyard is sited around the château and covers 55 hectares (136 acres) of the wider estate. It is planted 75 percent to Cabernet Sauvignon, 20 percent Merlot and 5 percent Cabernet Franc. The soil is a classic Médoc mix of layers of gravel of differing depths, mixed with sand and a little clay. This allows excellent drainage and moderates day-night fluctuations in temperature to help ripen the crop. Pauillac’s proximity to the Gironde estuary moderates weather extremes and helps to guard against frost.
Grapes are fermented in 43 temperature-controlled stainless steel vats, sized to correspond to specific parcels of vines. Vats are then tasted and a blend is made before ageing. Grand-Puy-Lacoste sees 16 to 18 months in Allier oak (two-thirds new wood).
Tasting notes
“The 2016 Grand Puy-Lacoste has a bright, elegant and poised bouquet with quite intense, mineral-rich black fruit, improving with every swirl in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, quite strict and linear, not a deep Pauillac ’16 yet tensile and very persistent on the finish. Classically styled Pauillac.”
[94, Neal Martin, February 2026, vinous.com]
