Wine Advisor
Le Pin 1985
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The exotic 1985 possesses a deep ruby color, and a full-throttle bouquet of sweet, ripe berry fruit, herbs, toffee, mocha, and toasty oak. Rather awkward during its first 5-6 years after bottling, it has settled down to reveal a lavishly rich texture, unctuously ripe flavors, and a sweet, alcoholic, lush finish. It is a dramatically ostentatious style of wine, so be prepared. Anticipated maturity: Now-2001. Last tasted,7/93.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Last Tasted 6/92 I have followed this wine closely since its inception and it has gone through some interesting stages of development. It was sumptuous from cask, but after bottling it tasted surprisingly light, weedy, and diffuse. About two years ago I began to have concerns about my initial high praise for it. But last year the wine returned to form, and this year it has exploded. The sensational richness, and the huge multidimensional nose of coffee, pepper, sweet oak, and jammy black fruits is profound. In the mouth, this deep, expansively flavored wine has an almost burgundian texture given its glycerin, richness, and velvety, lush finish. This is one of the most hedonistic examples of Le Pin ever produced. It appears to just now be coming into its own. Drink it over the next 7-10 years.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted alongside Petrus 1985 there is no competition - Jacques Thienpont hit a home run in this vintage whilst Petrus missed the ball. It has one of those ethereal, "melted" bouquets that has retained a sense of warmth, as if you can inhale that distant summer. The savoury aspect is more noticeable than previous bottles, but it remains immensely complex and engaging, dried rose petals and sous-bois notes emerging with continues aeration. The palate is beautifully balanced with fine tannins, a sensual rounded body with velvet tannins. It does not mess about, delivering waves of plush dark cherry and wild strawberry from the word go and never letting up, the finish so lavish you never want it to end. This is the best bottle of Le Pin 1985 that I have encountered. Tasted December 2013.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A sexy tart of a wine, this open-knit, expensive, fleshy wine offers up sumptuous notes of smoked herbs, melted caramel, espresso, jammy black currant and cherry fruit, and plenty of licorice. Very sweet, round, and luscious in the mouth with an unctuous texture, no obvious tannins, and a silky-textured, lush finish, this fully mature Le Pin should continue to drink well for 5-10 more years. Anticipated maturity: Now-2012. Last tasted 12,/01.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
This wine went through an unusual stage where it seemed disjointed, too oaky, and light, but that has all changed over the last 1-2 years. The wine is now a deep plum color with some lightening at the edge. The nose soars from the glass offering up an enticing fragrance of smoked herbs, sweet, jammy, curranty fruit, and toasty oak. In the mouth, caramel, toffee, and mocha blend with jammy cherry fruit to offer an unctuously-textured, thick, satiny smooth wine that is impossible to resist. Anticipated maturity: Now-2008. Last tasted 12/96
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted from magnum, the format makes a difference to this impressive Pomerol. Deep in colour, it has a candied nose of wild strawberry, black plum, blackcurrant winegums and hints of over-ripe orange. The palate displays wonderful balance and tension, a little tart on the entry and remaining surprisingly strict and linear compared to fellow 1985 Pomerols. It is tightly coiled but mellow with aeration. This is a classy, better behaved cousin of the precocious ’82. Sublime. Tasted November 2012.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at Bipin Desai’s Le Pin vertical in Los Angeles. The bottle of Le Pin ’85 must have been an off-bottle, not corked, but a nose redolent of Wellington boots and boiled cabbage! Fortunately the palate seemed untainted: firm tannins, good acidity, quite fleshy and driven by the Merlot with a smooth velvety finish. However, I do not particularly want to pinch my nose when tasting a Le Pin. 560 cases produced. Tasted November 2008.
About the Producer
Le Pin is the most expensive wine in the world. Jacques Thienpont purchased the meagre 1.6 hectares of land for one million francs in 1979. The Thienpoints named their wine Le Pin after a solitary pine tree that shaded the property. By acquiring tiny adjoining plots of land, Jacques has doubled the size of Le Pin to five acres. The south-facing vineyard on a well-drained slope of gravel and sand is planted with Merlot (about 92%), and a small amount of Cabernet Franc. Le Pin's soil is a mixture of gravel and clay with a little sand and is exceptionally low yielding (between 30 to 35 hl/hc). The grapes are hand-harvested and are fermented in stainless steel before being matured in`200%` new oak barriques for between 14 and 18 months. Dany Rolland, wife of cult-oenologist Michel Rolland, is a consultant here. Le Pin produces just 600 to 700 cases each year (Lafite Rothschild produces approximately 29,000 cases of wine a year and and Pétrus about 4,000) and its rarity is one of the driving forces behind its high prices. Le Pin produces super-concentrated, decadent, lush and lavishly oaked wines - they can be drunk young but are best with 7-10 years of bottle ageing.
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